Traditional orchards

Sometimes occupying the same piece of land for centuries, and managed without chemical input, they are often hotspots for biodiversity.

Orchards were once a key part of Devon’s agricultural economy, with labourers receiving part of their pay in cider.

Only about 5% of the orchards mapped in Devon in the 1930’s now survive.

Snapshot

What wildlife-rich looks like:

Traditional orchards are a much-loved part of Devon’s heritage and countryside. They consist of large fruit trees on vigorous rootstocks, planted at low densities and often occupying the same land for centuries. Managed without chemicals, they are hotspots for biodiversity and provide a rich variety of habitats in both trees and grassland layers.

Focus Species:

Flies: Dead wood flies

Bats 

Birds: lesser spotted woodpecker, spotted flycatcher

Insects: apple lacebug

Lichens: Dead wood lichens, field tree lichens. Lungwort.

UK significance:

UK priority habitat: Yes

1. About

Orchards are an important traditional habitat across Devon, especially linked with cider production. Devon varieties such as Slack Ma Girdle and Tremlett’s Bitter are part of local identity.

Key features include:

  • Long-lived fruit trees (apple, pear, plum, damson, cherry – including local varieties such as Whimple Queen, mazzards and Dittisham Plowman).
  • Veteran tree traits (hollows, deadwood, rot pockets) appear earlier than in oak or beech, increasing the array of micro-habitats they provide and the diversity of species they can support.
  • Traditionally grazed or cut grassland without the use of pesticides and fertilisers, resulting in high floristic diversity.

Orchards provide:

  • Biodiversity value: habitat for birds, invertebrates, bats, bryophytes and fungi.
  • Cultural value: heritage fruit varieties, strong links to rural traditions.
  • People benefits: places for wellbeing, recreation and community action.

Traditional orchards have declined nationally due to agricultural intensification (conversion to alternative use), development and abandonment. The average size of remaining orchards is less than 1 hectare.

Nationally: 24,600 ha (2008 estimate) of surviving orchards, representing a 57% decline since 1950.

Devon: up to 35,000 ha existed according to historic maps; today only around 1,700 ha remain.

Many initiatives have been developed in recent years to tackle the decline of orchards in Devon, see descriptions below. 

Key pressures and opportunities

Lack of management continues to threaten the extent and quality of the habitat. Unmanaged orchards will tend to become over-run with bramble and coarse grasses. Although relict orchards can provide good wildlife habitat, particularly for breeding warblers, without intervention, the fruit trees will decline and eventually die, leaving an area of scrub that will succeed towards secondary woodland.

Orchards are vulnerable to inappropriate management of the trees and ground layer:

– Over-grazing can degrade the quality of the habitat through damaging the ground flora, compaction and physical damage to the trees.

– Intensification of management can also be detrimental to biodiversity if it involves application of pesticides and fertiliser.

– Mechanical grass cutting generates a risk of physical damage to trees. Cutting without removing the arisings will tend to increase in fertility and reduce floral diversity.

– Restoration of relict orchards needs to be undertaken with care. Before removing collapsed trees, it is essential to determine whether they are a rare variety from which cuttings should be taken before removal.

Sourcing good quality stock for replanting has become much easier as interest in managing and restoring traditional orchards has grown. There are now multiple suppliers in the south-west offering  local fruit tree varieties on a range of rootstocks for creating or re-stocking traditional orchards.

Climate change may bring its own challenges for orchards through changing environmental conditions, increasing heat stress, increasing humidity and associated diseases, localised flooding/waterlogging and favouring new pests and diseases.

Although not widely known, orchards and fruit trees can be protected by Tree Preservation Orders where they provide public amenity and are not being used for commercial fruit production. Orchards may be recognised as County Wildlife Sites (CWS), a non-statutory ‘designation’ which indicates their conservation value (in the context of the planning system). Orchards are not widely represented among SSSIs.

There is considerable variation in levels of community support for traditional orchards across Devon. Community interest in and support for the management of traditional orchards appears to be a significant factor in the conservation, restoration and management of the resource in areas where there are active community initiatives.

The lack of a market for the produce from traditional orchards is an ongoing problem, because there is little financial incentive to maintain the orchards appropriately.

2. What we need to do and where

For advice on management and funding see Find Out More.

Priority

Well-managed traditional orchards, rich in wildlife, form the core of a county-wide network augmented by newly-planted orchards.

Actions for all traditional orchards

General actions

  • Survey the condition and extent of remaining orchards.
  • Restore and manage neglected orchards (pruning, scrub removal, replanting).
  • Plant 1,000 ha of new traditional orchards by 2030.
  • Support community orchards and expand advice, equipment and training hubs.
  • Develop local markets for orchard produce to ensure long-term viability.

General management actions

  • Protect rare or heritage varieties during restoration.
  • Grazing or cutting to maintain floristic diversity.
  • Careful pruning to extend tree life and fruit production.

Survey and monitoring

  • Complete Devon-wide habitat survey.
  • Ground-truth PTES data.
  • Assess whether orchards in agri-environment schemes are in favourable condition.

Advice and awareness

  • Training in pruning, grafting, orchard planning (e.g. via Orchard Link, Orchards Live).
  • Raise awareness of orchard value for wildlife, heritage and wellbeing.

Funding

  • Countryside Stewardship options (creation, management, pruning, planting).
  • Farming in Protected Landscapes support in National Landscapes.
  • Local authority and community funding.

Other relevant actions

  • Encourage designation as County Wildlife Sites where criteria met.
  • Explore biodiversity net gain and other nature markets as funding sources.
  • Work with landowners and new smallholders to stimulate restoration and planting.

Where to focus action

Priority areas for action include:

National Landscapes (North Devon, South Devon, Blackdown Hills, East Devon, Tamar Valley).

Districts of Mid Devon and Teignbridge.

3. Inspiration

There is strong community involvement in orchards across Devon:

  • Orchard Link (South Devon) – training, advice, community orchard support.
  • Orchards Live (North Devon) – restoration and community action.
  • Tavy & Tamar Apple Group (Tamar Valley) – heritage variety conservation.
  • Torbay Coast & Countryside Trust – manages several orchards, including community sites.
  • Devon Wildlife Trust – integrates orchards into nature recovery projects.
  • Community orchards – widespread across Devon; often run by volunteers for wildlife, produce and community wellbeing.

Case studies

Case studies and Where to visit will be agreed following discussion through public consultation period and then finalised.

Tamar Valley AONB orchard surveys and restoration.
South Devon AONB “Growing Orchard Communities” project.
North Devon Biosphere’s Community Orchard Challenge Fund (2020).

4. Find out more

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