Green Oasis Traditional Cache

Thorndon Country Park is 400 acres of attractive woods and parkland, in two parts. The northern section is on a gravel ridge and the southern part on clay soil lower down. The two parts are now linked by Old Thorndon Pastures, which is farmland that has been restored to a traditional farming landscape with small hedged fields, grazed by cattle.

The park offers a variety of habitats including ancient woodland, parkland, ponds, a marsh and meadow. There are some stunning ancient trees including Giant Oak and Hornbeam pollards, which are reminders that this was once a deer park. Parts of it used to be heath land, now a scarce habitat in Essex, and to restore it parts of the park, both north and south, are being grazed by goats and sheep.

Rhododendron ponticum is native to countries in the western and eastern Mediterranean such as Spain, Portugal and Turkey and also occurs eastwards through Asia into China. It is not native to Britain, but was first introduced in the late 18th Century. It became especially popular on country estates in Victorian times, providing ornamental value, as well as cover for game birds.
The origins of British Rhododendron are uncertain. There is some suggestion that it came from Asia. However, recent research indicates that it probably originates from Spanish and Portuguese introductions. Rhododendron thrives in milder, wet climatic conditions, where there are poor, acidic soils. Unless established stands are constantly kept in check, they will expand into adjacent areas, rapidly eliminating the majority of native plant species. The twentieth century demise of many former country estates and the consequent lack of control of remaining Rhododendron has allowed this species to invade large areas of the British countryside.
Rhododendron invades areas both vegetatively and via seed. Established plants spread by lateral horizontal growth of the branches. A single plant may eventually end up covering many metres of ground with thickly interlaced, impenetrable branches. Where the horizontal branches touch the ground, they will root, continually extending the area of Rhododendron cover. Rhododendron seeds are tiny and hence wind dispersed. Each flower head can produce between three and seven thousand seeds, so that a large bush can produce several million seeds per year. Although not all the seeds will grow successfully, but given the right conditions, a good many will germinate.