Steyning Community Orchard. Celebrating our 10th Birthday February 2024!

Ten years ago this month, the Steyning Community Orchard (SCO) was born. A committee was gathered, leader elected and what had been a dream in a couple of people’s minds started to become a reality.

It had taken two years to reach this point. Meetings with the Steyning Parish Council, specifically the Playing Fields Committee, yielded the permission and the support to re-establish the former orchard of Lewis Wood of Newham Lane. Fruit from this orchard used to be sold in the grocers’ shops of Steyning, whilst a pony grazed under the branches of the trees, no doubt enjoying the fallen apples!

The Parish Council acquired the orchard from Lewis Wood, to link this area with the cricket field, and became the Recreation Ground (subsequently the Memorial Playing Field) - an amazing location boasting one of the most beautiful backdrops to a cricket pitch anywhere in the country.

The terms of reference for the SCO project were to re-establish the orchard, saving those trees that could be saved, rescuing some that survived the hurricane of October ’87 and clear the area ready for replanting.

We wanted to create an orchard of trees donated by Steyning residents in memory of family and friends. These donations fund the trees and their maintenance.

The planning and planting of this area (and all the subsequent orchards) has largely been directed by Roger Brown who has a remarkable knowledge of fruit trees, root stocks and grafting, sapling management, and choosing the right apple for the right space. In the MPF he has created a central core of 23 Sussex heritage varieties of apples which is now one of the best, if not the best, collection in Sussex.

The ongoing care is in the hands of the SCO steering group and a band of enthusiastic volunteers who prune, strim and weed on a regular basis - Saturday mornings once a month - we’d love you to join us! - email us on: steyningorchard@gmail.com

The orchard project has grown. At the far end of Nightingale Lane, in the Rifle Range at the foot of the Downs, an orchard has been created in partnership with the Steyning Downland Scheme (SDS).

The soil is good, the trees are growing fast - in addition it is a dog free area so small children can play, for families to picnic, where walkers can rest, and a venue where the Beavers and Woodcraft folk and other groups can gather. A third orchard has started to be planted in a corner of the Abbey Road Village Green.

The Community Orchard vibe is in the air! We have helped Bramber establish an orchard in the Bramber Brooks. Horsham District Council has recently bought this site and plan to develop it as a wildlife corridor and water meadow.

Other local communities including Henfield, Thakeham, Findon and Singleton have tapped into our experience when developing their own orchards.

So, while there is so much pessimism around locally, nationally and globally, in this tiny corner of the planet, environmental issues are being addressed vigorously with positive results.

The Knepp Estate, the Steyning Downland Scheme, Bramber Brooks project, Steyning for Trees, the Abbey Road Conservation Project and our own Steyning Community Orchard are all things to celebrate and enjoy!!