Flatford Wildlife Garden

⚠  Our Winter opening dates are:
Green Christmas Weekend: 30 November & 1 December
Big Garden Bird Watch Weekend: 25 & 26 January
February half-term: 15-23 February
Mothers Day Weekend: 29 & 30 March

Open 10:30am – 3:30pm ⚠

Flatford is a family-friendly garden full of ideas that you can recreate in your own garden or community green space. Located in the idyllic village of Flatford, where John Constable used to paint, this Suffolk nature reserve buzzes with wildlife. Look out for the charming carved wooden garden creatures (and real ones), the living willow tunnel and the different birds that visit us in each season. Learn about wildlife friendly gardening from our knowledgeable volunteers and at our seasonal events. We've recently expanded the garden to include a wildlife pond – home to both Common and Great Crested Newts. Close by is our cob Wall for Wildlife which is a fantastic habitat for Solitary Bees and other insects.

Flatford Wildlife Garden is about celebrating the day-to-day joys that garden wildlife brings, whether it’s spotting a new generation of ladybird larvae on the willow tunnel, watching a cheeky Bank Vole tucking into a windfall apple, or catching a glint of blue from a gliding damselfly. The mayflies, newly hatched from the nearby river, also provide an amazing aerial dancing display over our mini-meadow each year – a true nature spectacle.

Swallows and martins gather in groups at the end of the summer, soaring and wheeling above the garden, making the most of the many insects at Flatford before their long journeys to their winter homes.

We carefully manage the garden to nurture and protect the wildlife that lives here. No matter the season, the planting and design of the garden give food and shelter to creatures of all kinds. Our wildflowers provide precious nectar for butterflies and their larvae. We have Stag Beetle pyramids, log piles that are left to rot for worms and woodlice and the lawn is allowed to grow out into a mini jungle which insects love. We also leave the seedheads on plants to provide wildlife with much-needed food in winter.

Set in the picturesque and historic hamlet of Flatford, the garden welcomes you in to learn more about wildlife. Flatford is part of Constable country – the area of Suffolk whose scenery features in the paintings of John Constable.

Large parties – if you could let us know in advance if you’re planning a visit it would be helpful. Please be aware there is a car parking charge in the National Trust car park, unless you are a NT member