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| Orchard losses 'threaten species' | Orchard losses 'threaten species' |
| (4 days later) | |
| Traditional fruit orchards are vanishing from England's landscape - with serious consequences for wildlife, conservationists have warned. | Traditional fruit orchards are vanishing from England's landscape - with serious consequences for wildlife, conservationists have warned. |
| The National Trust says 60% have disappeared since the 1950s, putting local varieties of apples, cherries, pears, plums and damsons under threat. | The National Trust says 60% have disappeared since the 1950s, putting local varieties of apples, cherries, pears, plums and damsons under threat. |
| It is launching a £536,000 drive to reverse the decline of the orchards. | It is launching a £536,000 drive to reverse the decline of the orchards. |
| Their trees provide important habitats for species such as the noble chafer beetle and lesser spotted woodpecker. | Their trees provide important habitats for species such as the noble chafer beetle and lesser spotted woodpecker. |
| The orchards - some with as few as five trees - also offer sources of pollen and nectar to bees, which are thought to be declining partly because of a lack of suitable food. | The orchards - some with as few as five trees - also offer sources of pollen and nectar to bees, which are thought to be declining partly because of a lack of suitable food. |
| Pressure from commercial fruit growers has led many small-scale producers to develop their orchards or convert them to other uses. | Pressure from commercial fruit growers has led many small-scale producers to develop their orchards or convert them to other uses. |
| FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME More from Today programme In Pictures: Orchards under threat | FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME More from Today programme In Pictures: Orchards under threat |
| The National Trust's head of nature conservation, Dr David Bullock, said traditional orchards had been "disappearing at an alarming rate over the last 60 years". | The National Trust's head of nature conservation, Dr David Bullock, said traditional orchards had been "disappearing at an alarming rate over the last 60 years". |
| "We are in real danger of losing these unique habitats - and the wildlife, local fruit varieties and their rich heritage - and if we don't act in some cases we will not even know what local varieties of fruit have been lost," he said. | "We are in real danger of losing these unique habitats - and the wildlife, local fruit varieties and their rich heritage - and if we don't act in some cases we will not even know what local varieties of fruit have been lost," he said. |
| The trust has teamed up with government advisory body Natural England to launch the project to promote local fruit varieties. | The trust has teamed up with government advisory body Natural England to launch the project to promote local fruit varieties. |
| It will undertake surveys to get a better understanding of the habitat, work to improve the condition of existing orchards and create new ones, and train people how to plant, prune and propagate trees. | It will undertake surveys to get a better understanding of the habitat, work to improve the condition of existing orchards and create new ones, and train people how to plant, prune and propagate trees. |
| Kate Merry has been appointed as orchard officer to champion the cause. | Kate Merry has been appointed as orchard officer to champion the cause. |
| She said: "We now have a real opportunity to reverse the decline of traditional orchards and recognise the important role they play in our cultural and natural heritage; if we don't act there is a real danger they will not survive the 21st Century." | She said: "We now have a real opportunity to reverse the decline of traditional orchards and recognise the important role they play in our cultural and natural heritage; if we don't act there is a real danger they will not survive the 21st Century." |
| Hollowed and gnarled | Hollowed and gnarled |
| Trees in traditional orchards are widely spaced and the sites are often grazed by animals such as sheep, or cut for hay. | Trees in traditional orchards are widely spaced and the sites are often grazed by animals such as sheep, or cut for hay. |
| They provide a good habitat for wildlife because they are subject to low intensity management, with few or no chemicals used, and the trees are allowed to reach a stage where they are hollowed and gnarled. | They provide a good habitat for wildlife because they are subject to low intensity management, with few or no chemicals used, and the trees are allowed to reach a stage where they are hollowed and gnarled. |
| The noble chafer beetle is among the rare species under threat | The noble chafer beetle is among the rare species under threat |
| The noble chafer beetle makes its home in the dead wood of older fruit trees, while the lesser spotted woodpecker can also find nesting and feeding areas in the trees. | The noble chafer beetle makes its home in the dead wood of older fruit trees, while the lesser spotted woodpecker can also find nesting and feeding areas in the trees. |
| A survey by the National Trust last year of more than 100 traditional orchards in its care turned up a number of other species in the habitat, many of them rare. | A survey by the National Trust last year of more than 100 traditional orchards in its care turned up a number of other species in the habitat, many of them rare. |
| At the Killerton estate in Devon, where the new programme has been launched, surveys found insects including the orchard park beetle and the apple tree lace bag. It also proved a feeding ground for long-eared bats. | At the Killerton estate in Devon, where the new programme has been launched, surveys found insects including the orchard park beetle and the apple tree lace bag. It also proved a feeding ground for long-eared bats. |
| Apples - including two varieties unique to the estate - are used to make cider and chutney, with the profits used to maintain the orchards. | Apples - including two varieties unique to the estate - are used to make cider and chutney, with the profits used to maintain the orchards. |
| Poul Christensen, acting chairman of Natural England, said: "Successful orchards are worth their weight in gold, not just for the valuable contribution they make to the economy but to the subsequent enhancement of these precious wildlife habitats." | Poul Christensen, acting chairman of Natural England, said: "Successful orchards are worth their weight in gold, not just for the valuable contribution they make to the economy but to the subsequent enhancement of these precious wildlife habitats." |
| In 2007, the government prioritised orchards as habitat to protect in recognition of their importance to wildlife. | In 2007, the government prioritised orchards as habitat to protect in recognition of their importance to wildlife. |