Wednesday 15th July 2026

There are some 28 native Kent orchid species that in most years you can see. If you know where to go and when.

There are orchids for most habitats: down, meadow, dunes, fields, and woods. Many are showy, others less so, but even the tiny Musk has a certain charm. If you get close enough.

But there is one that disappoints almost every time. Doubly so it is found only in at one site in north Kent, and as it has learned to self-pollenate, its flowers rarely ever open.

It is small, straggly, usually covered by ants, and is found now at just one location, in a lay by on a minor A-road between two picturesque villages.

Epipactis phyllanthes, aka The Green-flowered helleborine, aka the Green-flowered disappointment.

And I had not made the trip since 2021, and vowed not to go again.

There are, however, other things of interest in the area: the lavender fields, Dark Green fritillary butterfly, and Lullingstone church perhaps.

And on the way we go go to The Larches for some BLH action, and maybe Yellow birdsnests too.

So, I got the gang together, and all was set for Wednesday morning.

I dropped Jools off in town for her class, then scuttled back home for breakfast and tidy up. Iain arrived at ten past nine, then on route to collect Fran from the station, we picked up Jools.

So by half nine we were heading up Old Folkestone Road to join the A20, thus missing out the port and any possible delays.

Then it was a cruise up through Folkestone and Ashford, through Operation Brock contraflow, before finally turning up Detling Hill, and easing onto Pilgrim's Way, where we stop by the reserve entrance.

The Larches is well known, I guess, but for the first time visitor, the large sign for it is now hidden behind vegetation, so would be difficult.

Then along the path beside the road for five minutes, no real indication that there would be any open space, until you reach a crossing of paths, and in front is the meadow-cum-clearing.

Our first task was to turn left to look for the Yellow birdsnest under the canopy of some large trees, and in deep leaf litter we find three emerging spikes, in no better condition that the ones we found at Barham earlier in the week.

After snapping those, we turn round and walked back to the clearing, taking the side track to the upper gate, and from there I could see an amazing almost yellow BLH spike.

BLH are a variable species, with size, spike density, flower colour and so on differs from plant to plant, but here there are almost green ones all the way through to dark flowered spikes, almost chocolate-coloured.

Fran spots and snaps her first Chalkhill blue of the year, but it flies away when it sees my DSLR, as they always seem to do.

Then walk to the first of the orchids, getting some fine close ups with spikes covered in ants, and some with drunken wasps crawling among the flowers, their heads overed in pollen.

Huge amounts of St John's Wort covered the ground, and elsewhere, Ploughman's spikenard was coming into flower, though plants less vigorous than in previous years.

By the trees, there were many more BLH spikes, including the fine spike with Variegated basal leaves.

Finally, to the other path running along the bottom of the meadow, where there were dozens more spikes of BLH, some chocolate brown, and some green, many between the two.

An amazing visit.

We walk back to the car, then out back onto Detling Hill, turning down towards Maidstone, then back onto the motorway towards London.

We turn off just before it joins the M25, and turn back down the hill, across two roundabout before taking the turning to Eynsford.

Through the village, which is clogged with traffic caused by delivery vehicles, delivering. But out the other side, we pull up at the lay by.

On the left hand side, there were perhaps a dozen small plants, some with malformed spikes, those with normal flowers were closed tightly shut.

We take pictures, then I go to explore the bank to see if the colony had spread. I do find two spikes of a helleborine, but think they were of a BLH. Apparently there were more plants there, but I was away of Jools, Fran and Iain waiting on the road below, so I walk back.

From there it's a short drive to the next lay by, where from the opposite verge you can get a free view of the lavender fields.

The field has several people in, enjoying the scent and sight of the huge field. We take shots then get back in the car and drive to the country park.

Living here, on a bank beside a golf fairway is a large colony of butterflies, Dark green fritillaries, as species I have seen in Northumberland, but not in Kent.

From the café, it is a long walk up the down, through the wood, then along one fairway before crossing it by the tee, then if clear, across the second fairway to the bank.

The clouds of earlier had cleared, and it was now hot, so we sweated our way to the bank, and began to look.

Out target is a large orange butterfly, and should have been obvious, and in good numbers. But we see none. Nor do we see any Marbled whites either, just lots of Meadow browns and Gatekeepers, with a few newly emerged Common blues being very active.

We also come across a damselfly, a Wite-legged damsel, right on top of the down, a mile from the stream far below. We get shots.

We looked for an hour, then with time ebbing away, we walk back to the café, where we buy drinks and sit in the shade.

It was by now three, and the visit to the church was scrubbed, as the gates to the castle were locked. Although as we drove through Eynsford, I saw a sign over the old packhorse bridge and ford pointing the way to it.

I was set for home, however, and we made good time back to the motorway, where we could have turned onto the M25 in either direction, or back down to M20 to home.

We went south.

On the way we dropped Fran off at Faversham, then down the A2 in light traffic to Dover and home.

11,000 steps done, and hot and bothered. And hungry.

I cook breaded chicken, lentils, and peas & sweetcorn, rustled up in half an hour.

And then, eyes down for the big game, which kicked off at eight: England v Argentina.