Wednesday 10th June 2026

The madness of the main part of orchid season is dying down, with many species seen this year already but a memory. But as some species fade, others come into flower.

Kent is mostly chalk downland, and so alkali PH soil, and water meadows that used to line the major rivers in the county have long since been drained, leaving just a few places where nature can survive, hanging by a thread.

One of the species, the Early Marsh Orchid, is now only found beside the Medway, one of two species that is not found in east Kent.

I have not been there to the reserve for a couple of years, but after hearing that there were a few pale pink spikes to see, I asked Fran if she would like to come along.

She would, so would come down on the train, and be collected after I dropped Jools off in town.

Only the railways had other ideas. Her connecting train from Ramsgate didn't turn up, and staff didn't know when or if a replacement would turn up. So I said I would go to Ramsgate to pick her up.

I could change the route accordingly, so would be go to the Medway site first.

For the middle of school run, the trip to Ramsgate wasn't too bad, so I arrived at the station just after half eight and Fran was waiting, and the latest news was that a train wouldn't have arrived until quarter to ten. No matter we were on the move now.

Back to Thanet Way and heading west on the roller coaster that is Thanet Way, which they are trying to repair, but does mean that speed is limited to just 50. I had my eyes to the sky as the forecast was for rain later, and we wanted the sunshine for the orchids.

It seemed that we were heading into cloudy weather, our concern that the rain would hold off.

Once we crossed the Medway, we turned off the motorway and went down the main road, through villages until we reached Snodland.

Snodland is not a pretty town, cut in half by the now dualled A229, and the lower end of the town dominated by a paper mill by the river.

We parked in a narrow residential street next to the filling station. I put on my wellingtons, the first time I had worn them since tearing my knee Cartlidge two and a half years ago.

Just hoped I wouldn't suffer a similar injury. In truth, the injury was more down to the poor state of my legs and knee itself, rather than the expensive boots I had been wearing for just the second time.

We walked through the industrial estate, the busy yard to the right was now closed and guarded by automatic scanners, but they don't pick us up.

Down the subway, under the railways and there, in front was the reserve. Vegetation taller than six feet blocked the view, so rather than battle through that, we took the paved footpath and hoped to hop over the fence further along.

At least there was no barbed wire, so we were able to get over, and get through a thin line of vegetation, but where there were orchids previously, there was no sign.

We walk to the gate separating the two fields, and walk on. I checked where the D. x grandis used to be, of which there was no sign.

I felt if we went further on, and was proved right. Through the long grass I saw evidence of other people going this way, and a little further on we found orchids. And handily, KWT had numbered the pure Early Marsh spikes, meaning we found spike number four and spike number two, and a little further on we found an un-numbered smaller spike too.

But all in all there was only perhaps a dozen orchids, and two were apparently different hybrids, in that the hybrids had different parents.

But we snap them anyway, ten walk back to the fence, climb over and walk back to the car.

From Snodland it was a bit of a hike down to Ashford, but easier to take the A229 to the top of the M20, then south to Leeds before turning off and cruising down the A20, the good news was that as we went south and east, the weather was brightening.

We park in the woods, cross the road and down the gentle slope towards the bog and the boardwalk that crosses it.

Seemingly, the highland cattle, or were they longhorns, had to be replaced by ponies as people were trying to get selfies with the cattle and stressing them out. So with the cattle gone, many of the fences were removed too, and the ponies wander and munch.

We found a few Heath spotted as we neared the bog, then on either side of the boardwalk there were several, perhaps the best year for some time, but the area where the thickest numbers used to be found are now orchid-free.

One last place to search, was another bog the other side of the reserve, where a hybrid between the Heath spotted and the Southern marsh had been recorded.

I had vague memories, Fran had i-recorder, and between us we went northwards and down to another boardwalk. Across that and beside a dried up bog, behind some trees a path lead, and where there was a small bridge, in the dried up stream were several Southern Marsh.

We went to investigate, and at the back was one paler spike with spotted leaves, and SMO bracts; this was the hybrid.

Probably.

Yay.

As storm clouds gathered, we hurried back to the car, and then a long drive across country to Sandwich and back to Monk's Wall, as Fran had not been there before.

I set off with no clear idea of route, but into Ashford, then up through King's Wood to Challock, from there to Faversham before rejoining the A2 towards Dover, turning off for the Wingham turning.

I guess it took half an hour, but soon the coast was nearing, as were the clear blue skies and sunshine.

We parked down the slope, and once walking up, I was confronted by a scene of devastation: over 50m either side of the cycle path/footpath had been recently strimmed., flayed stems of Lizard orchids lay in the grass.

These are a protected species, and what was done had nothing to do with sight lines for drivers or anything, as vegetation on the road side of the barrier was untouched.

However, the central reservation was untouched, so we walked over and enjoyed the Lizards there in their prime.

We go to our last destination, Sandwich Bay, to check on a spike of Broomrape I saw last week, to see if it could be identified. But clouds blacker than my second wife's heart were gathering. A cold breeze had built up, we didn't have long.

After parking we walked over the meadow and through the dune slacks, where we were diverted by several newly emerged Small skippers feeding, we even snapped a couple.

Onto the golf course and just before the first fairway crossing were the two spikes.

Not Knapweed broomrape, probably some variant of Common broomrape. It was purple with a yellow top to the spike, and a fair size, but not big enough for Knapweed.

We walked back to the car, bought an ice cream, then I dropped Fran off in the centre of Sandwich, just as the first fat rain drops began to fall.

Day became night as I drove out of the town, and yet by the time I got to Deal it was raining much less, and seemed brighter.

I drove back along the coast, getting back at half three. I fired up the storm radar and saw spikes being registered all over east Kent and Thanet.

It rained hard here, and almost dark enough to have the lights on.

And so to the evening and dinner. Or supper.

And then, nothing.

Just a long evening with no football. But fear not, the world cup begins at 20::00 BST on Thursday, so Scully and I can watch a game before bed time, each and every night.