Ovingham Community Orchard

A beautiful sunny day for the Eco Church Fair in St Mary’s churchyard to celebrate World Environment Day. The Orchard hosted a stall showing young visitors how to make a Bee Home to take away to put in their garden. Lots of interest and enthusiasm, and hopefully there will be some happy bees. Thanks to all involved.

Anne Hudson, who is trying to encourage people and families to record local sightings of birds, butterflies and animals/amphibians also had a stall at the fair. It would be wonderful if you would like to be involved in this so that we can help monitor how our wildlife is doing. If you would like to take part you can download the forms from Our Documents on this site.

On Sunday a small gathering roused themselves in what felt like the middle of the night and made it down to the field to listen to the the glory that is the dawn chorus. On a chilly, but fine, morning amongst the birds we could identify were; blackbirds, a song thrush, chiff-chaffs, great tits, collared doves, a dunnock and (loudest of all!) the tiny wren. And, of course, one of the Ovingham Peacocks.

As part of encouraging people to watch/discover/record wildlife we would like to invite you take part in the 2021 survey being organised locally to record sightings of birds, butterflies and mammals in Ovington/Ovingham so that we can get an idea of how numbers are being affected by climate change, etc. Just keep a record of what you see whilst you are out and about locally and submit at the end of the year. A great thing to do with youngsters to get them interested in our wild creatures. You can download the forms from the Our Documents section on this website.

Well, maybe not forever, but the orchard field does now have some strawberries growing this year. In the hay, rather than straw! So if you have a look at the hay circle you will spot some small strawberry plants tucked into the sides. As the hay naturally decomposes it should provide a good growing medium for the little plants and hopefully there will be a few strawberries to pick in the summer, and food for the birds no doubt. We spotted the first native daffodils coming up too and how lovely to see the Willow Hide and new seats being well used.

The orchard has been transformed into a winter wonderland by this spell of extremely cold weather. A little snowman has appeared along with visitors on their sledges both in the field and on the slope on the village green. Wonderful to see people finding some cheer and magic at this awful time.

To mark National Tree Week we have a new addition to the orchard. Ruth Thompson of Sylvan Skills has constructed a splendid Willow Hide at the bottom of the field. Next year we hope to place some seating inside and it will offer a quiet place to sit and contemplate and offers excellent views of the orchard and St Mary’s Church. There are a couple of viewing holes looking towards the burn. Thanks to Mandy for assisting, and sorry we couldn’t involve more supporters, but social distancing rules do not currently allow this.

More wildflower seeds have been sown on a patch between the apple trees, which has been mown short and scarified in preparation. Lets hope we eventually have a lovely display in future years.

If you have been down to the field you may wonder what the mysterious hay circle is! Well for now it can be a place to sit (and allows for social distancing), but in the early spring, once it has rotted down a bit, we are going to plant strawberry plants in the hay, to make a temporary raised bed. Further information can be found here https://www.flowerpotman.com/hay-and-straw-bale-gardening/

After a spell of hot sunny weather conditions were ideal over the weekend for making hay. Ian Todd very kindly cut and turned the grass, and an enthusiastic team gathered it up so that it could be taken away to be bailed. This year the Ragwort was removed, so we are hoping the hay will be suitable for animal fodder.

Before the field was cut the annual survey of plants and wildlife was carried out – the results can be found in the ‘Our Documents’ page on this site. Thanks to Marie Schoales for compiling this.

Over the last few months it has been wonderful to see so many people visiting the orchard and enjoying sitting in the sunshine on the throne. Paths have now been cut through the grass to make wandering around easier, but leaving more plants for visiting wildlife, of which there is plenty!

If anyone is interested in bees, you join in the North East Bee Hunt and look for bees in the orchard, or in your garden or any wild area. Details can be found at https://www.nhsn.ncl.ac.uk/activities/the-north-east-bee-hunt/

Unfortunately, lock down due to Covid has curtailed group activities at the orchard, but we have a few new additions (and subtractions). Mike Broadhurst has constructed a splendid new notice board near the gate, so we can keep users and passers-by informed. Our thanks go to him.

In the patch seeded with wild flowers (near the Gooseberries) Yellow Rattle has appeared and this should have the effect of reducing the amount of grass in that area and next year more perennial flowering plants should grow to increase the diversity of plants. We will wait and see!

And a small group of us spent a couple of hours yesterday removing the Ragwort from most of the field. Ragwort is poisonous to animals and by removing it we should get a crop of hay suitable for fodder when the field is cut in a month or so.