Community orchard taking root in Bishop's Stortford and climate café launch on the menu too

I have always loved new year, bringing with it the chance of new beginnings. This month sees a new beginning at the Northern Parkland on St Michael's Mead, where the Bishop’s Stortford Community Orchards Group (BSCOG) will be planting the town’s first community orchard on Saturday January 14.

At first glance, a community orchard is simply a collection of fruit trees shared by the community and grown in a publicly accessible place. But it is so much more than that. It is a haven for biodiversity, a store of carbon from the atmosphere, a place for people to meet, to work side by side and to connect with nature and with food.

Orchards are now very rare habitats in this country. Since 1900, 56% of UK orchards, and over 80% of traditional, low-density orchards, have been lost to farms and urban development. This decline is intensifying in 2022 as soaring labour and energy costs make it unaffordable for farmers to pick the fruit, and some are ripping out orchards to make way for crops that pay.

This is bad news for nature. The combination of trees, grassland and wildflowers in a traditional orchard offers a unique range of habitats that enable insects, birds, bats and small mammals to thrive.

Bees, hoverflies, butterflies and other pollinators are drawn to the blossom and wildflowers for nectar. The grassland provides cover for small mammals such as voles and hedgehogs. Bats such as pipistrelles and birds such as blue tits feed on the insects and fieldfare, redwing and other thrushes enjoy the windfall fruits.

This rich biodiversity – the diverse forms of life in an area – is important because it increases resilience, helping local environments to survive changes and shocks such as climate change.

The Northern Parkland orchard will feature a variety of trees – apples, pears, plums and cherries – planted in an informal layout.

Most are heritage varieties, which have been traced back to Hertfordshire origins, many of them from the Rivers Nursery in Sawbridgeworth, home of the conference pear. This genetic diversity, in stark contrast to the uniform fruit favoured by commercial farmers, helps to preserve local varieties and make our fruit crops more resilient.

The trees in the orchard will play a part in helping to reduce climate change, by capturing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in their wood and roots and in the soil system. Recent studies suggest that UK trees lock away twice as much planet-warming carbon as previously thought, so the orchard will act as a carbon sink in the long term.

On top of all these environmental benefits is the simple fact that the orchard belongs to the community and is intended as a place for people to gather, relax and enjoy nature. In the words of Lewis McNeill, London manager for the Orchard Project charity: "People think about the fruits first, but the real value comes from the connection to each other and to nature, at a time when we’ve got so much lack of wellbeing, so many mental health issues."

The orchard is the result of over a year of work by the BSCOG, an offshoot of the Bishop’s Stortford Climate Group: finding a suitable location, planning, securing council support and funding.

The group has received a grant from East Herts Council (EHC) for £2,830 to cover the cost of the trees, information boards, equipment, first aid training and kit, group admin and working with schools.

Jill Goldsmith, a member of the group, is excited about what’s in store: "We'll be able to hold events for people to enjoy the blossom, track the changes in wildlife in the areas and, in due course, to enjoy the fruits of our labours!"

Cllr Jonathan Kaye, executive member for communities at EHC, echoes her enthusiasm: “This is a fantastic project with huge community and environmental benefits that we are pleased to be supporting through our grants programme. I very much look forward to seeing the transformation at Northern Parkland as the new trees establish and grow.”

Everyone is invited to help with planting the orchard on Saturday January 14. It will take place from 10am to 3pm (weather permitting) and will involve digging holes for the trees, planting the trees, adding lots of mulch and erecting noticeboards and individual tree labels, which have been designed with the help of pupils from Manor Fields and Hillmead primary schools.

If coming along, please bring gloves and sturdy footwear – tools will be provided, although feel free to bring your own. Home-made cakes will be on offer, but you will need to bring any other refreshments. Check www.bishopsstortfordcommunityorchards.org for details or call 07798 921950 in case bad weather means the group has to rearrange. I hope to see you there.

I also want to share news of another important climate-related initiative starting in Bishop’s Stortford in January: a climate café. This is a safe and welcoming space where people can explore their feelings around climate change and connect on this most urgent of issues.

Many people feel deeply concerned about the climate crisis, but it’s really hard to talk about and it’s easy to feel alone in your fear. I myself struggle with climate anxiety from time to time – that’s part of the reason I have not written this column for six months – and I imagine I always will, as this crisis is not going to go away.

Learning how to take care of our emotional wellbeing is so important, as it builds our resilience and allows us to keep going, to keep taking action, to keep alive the idea of the world we want to see.

This is where the climate café comes in. The group follows a particular format, starting with an informal chat over tea and coffee, followed by the discussion group, and is run by experienced facilitators. The climate café is not a campaigning group or a place to discuss policies or what needs to be done about the crisis. People may be inspired to take action as a result of attending, but this is not the primary aim of the group.

The group will gather once a month on the second Thursday at 7pm. Numbers are limited so everyone can play an active part and you don’t have to go to every meeting. There is no charge for the café, although donations to cover costs are welcome. Everyone is welcome. If you would like to join the group or would like more information, contact Joe on joseph.mishan@phonecoop.coop.