Martins' Meadows Nature Reserve

Martins' Meadows nature reserve Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Martins' Meadows nature reserve Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Martins' Meadows nature reserve Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Martins' Meadows nature reserve Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Martins' Meadows nature reserve Suffolk Wildlife Trust

By Steve Aylward

Martins' Meadows Nature Reserve

These three meadows are among the few flower-rich hay meadows still left in Suffolk. As they have never been fertilised, sprayed or drained, the site supports a wide range of wildflowers. To maintain the meadows’ diversity management is by a summer hay cut followed by aftermath grazing.

Location

Rookery Road, Monewden
Framlingham
Suffolk
IP13 7DF

OS Map Reference

TM226572

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A static map of Martins' Meadows Nature Reserve

Know before you go

Size
4 hectares
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Entry fee

Free
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Grazing animals

Seasonal sheep grazing.

Please refer to the link in walking trails below for more information.
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Walking trails

Do’s and don’ts when walking with livestock       
Access is through a five bar gate, it’s a short walk around the meadows but this can be wet and uneven. To avoid damage to the flora and hay crop, please keep to the edge of the meadow. Ground conditions can be very wet. Please clear up after your dog.

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Access

Not suitable for wheelchairs.

No drone flying without express permission.
(Permission will only be granted in exceptional circumstances)

If you'd like to visit this reserve as a group, please contact us in advance.

Find out why we ask you to keep your dog on a short lead at most of our reserves and why this is important for wildlife conservation. Why we ask dogs are kept on a lead

Dogs

image/svg+xmlOn a lead

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times. Best to visit before hay cut in July.

Best time to visit

March to June ( before hay cut)

About the reserve

These three meadows are among the few flower-rich hay meadows still left in Suffolk. As they have never been fertilised, sprayed or drained, the site supports a wide range of wildflowers. To maintain the meadows’ diversity management is by a summer hay cut followed by aftermath grazing.  

In spring and early summer, visitors can enjoy superb displays of wildflowers, including early-purple, green-winged, fragrant, and pyramidal orchids. In late summer the meadows bloom once more, this time with meadow saffron. Most of the hedges enclosing the site are at least 100 years old and contain many different species of trees and shrubs including field maple, hazel, hawthorn and spindle. They are maintained by rotational coppicing or laying, in which sections are periodically cut to the ground, encouraging them to re-grow and thicken to produce a dense hedge that is good for wildlife.  

The reserve also has two orchards which include many local varieties of apple, along with pear, plum, quince, medlar and walnut.

Contact us

Suffolk Wildlife Trust
Contact number: 01473 890089