Just three years after they were planted, hedgerows and young trees in once-neglected pony paddocks are providing vital food and shelter for wildlife.
Back in January 2022, fifteen volunteers turned out at a neglected set of paddocks, just outside the village of Etton, near Peterborough. Over the next three days, they created over 200 metres of double hedgerow and planted 37 fruit trees.
Later, an avenue of small-leaved lime trees was added to the site. Nest boxes for swifts and barn owls were installed, in addition to boxes for roosting bats.
Now, three years on, the emergent hedgerows are looking healthy and the fruit trees are starting to bear fruit, which will provide a source of food for birds and mammals come the autumn. And it’s all thanks to the ongoing efforts of local volunteers, who kept the young trees and shrubs well-watered over the punishingly dry summers that followed their planting.
Mike Horne, of the Langdyke Countryside Trust, visited the site this May and was thrilled to see how this John Clare Countryside project is coming along.
“The hedges on the southern boundary are forming a really dense shelter belt and are already starting to seed naturally to fill in any gaps,” observed Mike. “And the hedge and trees on the western edge are all coming along leaps and bounds since last year.
“The small leaved limes along the central avenue are doing well and the orchard still has 34 out of the 37 fruit trees that we planted in 2022, which is brilliant. The young fruit is already visible on the trees, so it looks like there’ll be a good crop this year.”
Watch this space for more project updates.
