News

TRUST NEWS & EVENTS

Forthcoming events at Kemerton Conservation Trust

This section will be updated regularly and will provide information regarding planned forthcoming events for the Trust's Friends and volunteers:

Cider Making Course - End of November 2010

KCT has been offered 2 places on a three-day course on CIDER MAKING. The National Trust is administering the funding provided by Natural England. Click here for further details.

Apple identification Workshop HARTPURY ORCHARD CENTRE (Gloucestershire) - 22nd October 2010

As part of the Orchard Project that KCT is receiving funding for The National Trust has invited us to send two people on an APPLE IDENTIFICATION WORKSHOP. The course is free. Details are as follows:

The Hartpury Orchard centre is a lovely oak framed building set among wetland and haymeadows. Richard Toft of Pershore College will be our expert tutor for the afternoon. The session will be a mix of theory and hands on work. Hartpury is also home to the Hartpury National Perry Pear collection, and you may like to allow time to wander through the pear, apple and plum trees on the self guided orchard trail.

On: 22nd October 2010, Time: 1:30 – 4:30pm, At: The Hartpury Orchard Centre, Blackwells End, Hartpury GL19 3DB

As with the Cider Making Course I would be grateful if you could let as many people know as possible who support the Trust either via KOW or/and through the Friends of Kemerton, website etc. I am looking for people, who will be willing to use their new-found skills to help us identify more of our old trees and to pass on their knowledge to others.

If you are interested please contact John Clarke on 01386 725653 or at kct@btinternet.com

Other events are as follows:

Sunday 12th September 2010 - Working party (10am start, location to be confirmed)
Saturday 16th October 2010 - Kemerton Orchard Workers Apple Day at Kemerton Village Hall
Saturday 30th October 2010 - Working party (10am start, location to be confirmed)

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Latest News Stories

The Annual Report for 2008-2009 can be viewed here

Kemerton Ochard Day - Octobor 2009. Was a great success with a huge turn-out of visitors. Three accompanied Orchard Walks were organised through the walled garden and The Lillans Orchard. The Village Hall held a number of events including apple pressing, a display of local arts and crafts. The Trust would like to thank all who attended and helped to make the day a complete success.

Kemerton Orchard Day 'Volunteers'

Spring is in the air and the latest Kemerton Cuttings (March 2009) is now available...

25th Feb 2009. Orchard future looks rosy as Kemerton Conservation Trust celebrates grant award. The Trust is delighted to announce it has just been awarded a grant of £19,800 for orchard restoration and conservation in Kemerton as part of a nationwide partnership project led by the National Trust (p ress release leaflet).


Kemerton Orchard Workers at work...

Kemerton Conservation Trust has been offered a grant by Natural England - via the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund - to last until the end of March 2009. The grant covers more work at Kemerton Lake Nature Reserve - including the training and employment of a part-time warden, the training of a volunteer in bat detection, the extension of the arboretum and habitat management work. The Trust is grateful to Natural England for its continued support.

Our annual Open Day at Kemerton Lake Nature Reserve on Sunday 19 October 2008 was a big success.
Fungus expert Jo Weightman led a walk in the Arboretum; identifying different fungi and giving a talk. Trustees and volunteers were also on hand throughout the event to answer questions on the conservation work KCT undertakes in the local area and to identify flora and fauna of the reserve for the attendees. The day was cold and blustery but that did not stop locals from turning out to support the Trust and enjoy the wonderful walks.

Over 100 people took part in the two walks and over £200 was taken on the day. This year we were able to expand the open day event to include a refreshment tent and information stand, which were both popular, even if the gale force winds nearly blew them away! There was also a nature trail for younger supporters. All in all it was a big hit and we got some great coverage in the Tewkesbury Observer and Evesham Journal.

Highlights of the reserve include our mining bee colony, the water birds found on our beautiful lake and the exotic species Arboretum, through which several permissive paths run. The autumn colour was just beginning to show on Sunday and for those still there at the end of the day, we were treated to the sight of hundreds of starlings coming to roost in our reed beds.

Kemerton Conservation Trust is grateful to Huntsmans Quarries Limited, who landscaped this reserve in 1997 after extracting sands and gravels, for generously donating materials to build this access track and a stockpile for future repairs to reserve paths and tracks. They have supplied the recycled hardcore from their processing plant at Naunton Quarry. There too the area is rich in wildlife and Huntsmans are commissioning surveys as a baseline for their environmental plans for the quarry. See website www.huntsmansquarries.co.uk Tel 01451 850555

A new set of rides through Kemerton Arboretum are now open to the public following a successful event which over fifty ‘Friends of KCT’ and local residents attended. The Opening Event, which was held on Sunday 20 July, included the official opening of the permissive paths to the general public.

Events - this section details forthcoming events happening at the Trust over the next few weeks

Bat Boxes purchased with donations from KCT supporters are being installed across Kemerton Estate and it is hoped that in 2009 we will begin a survey to add to our knowledge of bats here

The public information boards at Kemerton Lake Nature Reserve need renewing and KCT’s appeals for help have been answered. Several people are using their computer skills to help us design the new posters

Daffurn’s Orchard recently featured in an edition of the BBC Television programme ‘Gardeners’ World’ (Spring 2008) - the '2007 Newsletter' is available

Kemerton Lake Nature Reserve has an update for August 2007 here

Kemerton Estate is applying for organic status for four of its orchards and if successful will be registered as such within two years

Meanwhile ‘Slipstream Organics’, a vegetable box scheme, has negotiated to take apples from the Lillans and the Walled Garden orchards. This will provide customers with a chance to taste many of the 200+ varieties grown by KCT staff and volunteers

Web Updates - Feb 2008 saw a wholesale re-organisation of the site's content into a more comprehensible structure. Further content has been added in May this year including a significant number of new photographs taken on the estate by John Clarke

Kemerton Clippings is the official Kemerton Conservation Trust Newsletter. It features the Trust's latest news, information on funding, volunteering and sponsorship, and accounts of recent events held by the Trust

The Conservation Advisor's Report 2007 is now available here

A busy open day in 2007 when visitors were able to meet and talk to governors and Trust staff

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The Orchard continues to be managed as an ‘orchard nature reserve’. The grass was cut and carried in early autumn 2006 and later on sheep were brought in graze the remaining sward.

General site management last winter included cutting away encroaching scrub from the fence line, clearing broken branches, cutting suckers and spot spraying competing weeds around young trees. At one point during the winter rabbits were beginning to damage the older trees by nibbling the bark and so two volunteers fitted protective netting around the trunks. Thanks to one or two dedicated local people the area of grass between the gate and the seat has been mowed regularly.

John Edgeley from Pershore College was called in for another training session – this time to manage the re-growth following earlier conservation work on the older trees.

Several young trees were planted to fill in larger gaps – we have a few more in pots ready to go out this winter and that should complete the re-planting programme.

The BBC Television series ‘Gardeners’ World’ contacted the Trust and Kemerton Orchard Workers (KOW) and came to visit Daffurn’s Orchard. Subsequently they came back with a film crew to make a piece about community orchards which should appear in the new series starting this autumn.

KOW is organising an ‘Apple Day’ celebration on 20th October between 1400 and 1700. Depending on the season there will be a display of apples, apple juicing, recipes and stalls.

To help support its work KOW has produced a beautiful 2008 calendar about Daffurn’s Orchard. The calendar will be available from several local people and from Kemerton Stores.

Kemerton Orchard Workers continues it’s good work and Kemerton Conservation Trust is most grateful for their support for this community orchard.

Meanwhile ‘Slipstream Organics’, a vegetable box scheme, has negotiated to take apples from the Lillans and the Walled Garden orchards. This will provide customers with a chance to taste many of the 200+ varieties held at Kemerton.

KOW is looking for one or two more local people who can offer help for just a few hours each year. For most jobs, a party of 6-8 is sufficient – although extra hands are always welcome. The target is to maintain a core group of 15-20 volunteers, who donate their labour for around 3 hours twice a year. Without the kind assistance of local people, Daffurn’s Orchard would deteriorate, and a great community asset would be devalued. If you would like to help us, please contact Olivia Chance on 01386 725 203.

Kemerton Estate is applying for organic status for four of its orchards and if successful will be registered as such within two years.

Management
Once the trainee had left after the end of the previous funding period prospects for the management of the reserve were bad but thanks to the dedicated work of two local volunteers much of the essential work associated with access and Health and Safety have continued. They also carried out maintenance work on the trials sites. Another volunteer carried out important work in monitoring birds, including regular surveys of groups and individual species. The Trust is most grateful for their help.

Funding
KCT has been awarded a grant from Natural England (via the Aggregates Sustainability Fund) – to run until 31/03/2008. The main focus of this support will be on extending the length of woodland walk and enlisting the help of a Volunteer Coordinator who will seek to raise awareness of the work of KCT.

The Co-ordinator will try to increase the number of volunteers that the Trust can call on to help the existing small group of dedicated and trained supporters. These volunteers may only be called on to help on a few occasions each year but their contribution will be vital to the success of our work.

The Co-ordinator will also seek to raise awareness of the work of KCT and to appeal for regular funding from local individuals, as well as from businesses and other organisations.

Research

Mining Bees – The trials continue but meanwhile a report has been produced for Natural England. A full report has been submitted for publication and will later be available here.

Leaf Litter Trials – Anemone is the latest plant to appear in two of the trial areas. In others, where plants have become well-established, they are beginning to spread out from the exclosures.

Wintering Bird Feeding – this trial was unsuccessful last winter because there was no suitable cover in which to feed but hopefully the experiment will continue this winter.

Kingfisher Perches at Kemerton Lake

This Page Revised: September 05, 2010.

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