Waitrose digging for wildlife

As well as providing money for the trees, staff from the Storrington store helped to plant over fifty saplings in the new orchard at Kirdford which, in times past, was well-known as an important apple-growing area.

Old orchards are disappearing at such an alarming rate they are now classified as rare wildlife habitat. The West Weald Landscape Project, based at Sussex Wildlife Trust, is helping restore the county’s lost orchards by encouraging local landowners to plant Sussex heritage apple varieties such as Egremont Russet from Petworth, and Sussex Mother.

Petra Billings, the West Weald Landscape Project Manager says, “Thanks to Waitrose and its staff, we can establish a new orchard close to ancient woodland, providing a green corridor to help local wildlife thrive and move around easily. Traditional orchards are perfect for wildlife. Bees and other pollinating insects love apple blossom, while the trees provide feeding areas for birds such as woodpeckers and roosting sites for bats.”

Waitrose kindly donated £500 towards the new orchard - to celebrate 75 years in the John Lewis Partnership, every branch received funds to plant trees in their local community.

Tom North, Storrington’s Branch Manager says “We were thrilled to pull on our wellies in support of this project, which is a fantastic investment in the future of the Sussex countryside.”

The West Weald is one of the most wooded landscapes in Britain, covering a large area of West Sussex and south Surrey, north of the town of Petworth.