There are very few ancient orchards around. As far as we know (through information gleaned from several sources including the Orchard Network which has a register of all urban orchards in England) There are 4 traditional urban orchards left in Essex. None of the others appear to be ancient orchards, so the Irvine Road Orchard is probably unique.
There’s no doubt that it is a special place and it would be a tragedy if it were lost simply to make a fast buck for some ruthless property developer.
Let the Colchester Borough Council Planning Department know what you think, email them at:
planning.policy@colchester.gov.uk
Source: www.orchardnetwork.org.uk/