Wilder Kent Blog

By August, floral glory has passed from the orchids (heath spotted, southern marsh and a few large hybrids) to the heather or ling. As ever, we hope for a protracted display of purple in the heathy areas, which is likely if the cool nights persist. Orchid seed is now ripening. Dust-like, dispersed on the wind, the seed contains no nutrients to support germination so needs a mycorrhizal fungus to supply nutrients from the soil to its roots. From seed to flowering takes three years or more.

During the 50 years or more that I have been involved with studies on the coasts of Kent and Sussex, I have seen considerable change to the inshore marine environment and its fauna and flora...

The Making Space for Nature Project is leading on Kent and Medway’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). A team has been in place since October, engaging with stakeholders about nature recovery plans for Kent's future.

Looking to create a garden that’s not just beautiful but also provides a range of benefits for wildlife, as well as ongoing summer flowers? There’s lots of consider when choosing plants. I’m the Wild About Gardens Officer at Kent Wildlife Trust and these are my favourite summer plants that are blooming in my garden this season.

Sara Booth-Card, ecologist, peatlands and Action For Insects campaigner at The Wildlife Trusts, looks out for the telltale signs of flying ant days and shares her love for the underground world of ants.

July is Disability Pride Month, a time to celebrate the achievements of people with disabilities and to advocate for greater accessibility and inclusion.

The county of Kent is blessed with an extensive coastal and intertidal environment comprising elements of the eastern Thames Estuary, the southern North Sea and the English Channel. In north-east Kent, located between the towns of Whitstable and Deal, is the North East Kent Marine Protected Area (NEKMPA) which includes the previously designated North East Kent European Marine Site, the Thanet Coast Marine Conservation Zone and Sandwich & Pegwell Bay National Nature Reserve.

Those of you who have been following the development of the Blue Influencers Scheme being delivered by Kent Wildlife Trust may recall that KWT successfully bid for funding from The Ernest Cook Trust and the #iwill Fund and were awarded £20,000 a year for three years. This enabled the recruitment of Jenny Luddington to the role of Blue Mentor, who will be responsible for recruiting young people to become ‘Blue Influencers’.