220+ acres of ancient woodland, ornamental gardens, rare wildlife, wildflowers and birds.
Here Jay gives us a run down of the grounds and gardens.
We partner with Natural England and A-Rocha (UK) to better understand how we can care for our site. Natural England is supporting us through a 10 year stewardship scheme covering much of the land within our care.
Over 200 acres of ancient woodland, wildlife and lakes to discover.
Swipe to find out more about the wildlife and plant life found here.
Providing continuity in our changing world some areas of the woodland date back over 500 years. With numerous veteran trees, this ancient broadleaf woodland provides a precious habitat for rare and specialised wildlife. Most of the area is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), some of our trees supporting over 250 different insect species.
Native Roe Deer are not an uncommon sight; they are sensitive animals that have come to find sanctuary within this place, often found congregating in small groups on the woodland edge.
The lakes are stunningly beautiful, especially in the mornings with the mist over. They support fresh water fish and the rare red pondweed has found place here together with insects and the common reed and bullrush.
These lakes look natural, but are in fact constructed as part of a major redesign of the parkland by the renowned landscape architect Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown in around 1767.
Read more about Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown
Bordering the house, our ornamental gardens offer a wonderful setting to enjoy peace and tranquility. Maybe its the views of lakes and woodland, from the front terrace or west lawn or perhaps the quiet walled prayer garden; wherever you find your favourite spot, there’ll be an array of scented plants and seasonal colours to enjoy.
We are taking extra care of our meadow areas to promote wild flowers. We do this by reducing nitrogen levels in the soil, which favours wild flowers, rather than grass. This in turn provides a place for small mammals, inspects and birds to live and thrive. Read about our wildflower meadow
Modern agriculture practice produces a lot of carbon into the atmosphere, as well as using pesticides, insecticides and fungicides, which isn’t good news for any of us. Increasingly, the food you eat at Ashburnham Place will have been grown in our Kitchen Garden, which works with nature to produce tasty nutritious food, chemical free.
Taking action to support positive change for people and the place
Healthy soil produces the perfect environment in which to grow food. Our produce is grown on site using zero dig methods; letting healthy soil do what it does best.
We currently compost all of our paper, cardboard as well as cooked and raw food waste, reducing our demand on landfill.
We love working with nature; it breaks down our rubbish produces compost for the land, which in turn rewards us with great food to eat.
We want to work with nature in the creation of a food forest. Food forests aim to replicate the natural biodiversity found in woodland and produce a source of wonderful natural food.
Trees are stronger together and less prone to disease when they’re good mix of different varieties; diversity is the key!
We plant trees that complement each other, planting some trees that grow tall, others smaller and then bushes and shrub layers, all having different roles, but together produce a stronger healthier community. Just like a woodland, but designed to grow food!
We have some way to go but to be more sustainable. Find out more about our projects below.
A few years ago we sunk a borehole which provides us with almost all of the water we use on site.
Our electricity is currently from a green energy suppler, but we’ve got plans to generate our own and install some clever kit to help manage our consumption more efficiently.
We’ve got some way to go, but one of the major projects we undertook was the installation of our biomass boiler, to provide us with the majority of our heating and hot water. We use locally grown chestnut as fuel on a rotational coppice system, meaning it is both carbon neutral and a sustainable source of fuel for the future.
We’ve been building sustainable homes for thousands of years, our ancestors knew how important it was to work with nature. We’re on a journey to discover what’s possible.
Our straw bale house is one small step, using straw, clay, lime and cedar for the roof. It’s been a collaborative project, drawing in a wide group of experts and enthusiasts to discover what is possible.
Local sheep have even contributed wool fleece to insulate the roof!
We have one lake walk open to all visitors that have enjoyed refreshments from the Orangery Tea Room.
Broad Water walk is an accessible stroll with a very gentle incline, approx 2km in length with views around the lake.
We have walks open to residential guests, these are varied walks between 2km and 4km. We encourage guests to get out into the grounds, explore the paths that criss-cross the site and discover the wonder of creation.
People and produce flourish in an atmosphere of love.
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Ashburnham Christian Trust
Ashburnham Place
Battle
East Sussex
TN33 9NF
United Kingdom
General enquiries:
Open Tuesday – Sunday
01424 892244
Individual bookings and the Orangery:
Open Tuesday – Sunday
01424 894201
Group bookings:
Open Tuesday – Friday
01424 894238 or 01424 894207
Monday – not open
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ⓒ 2023 All rights reserved. Ashburnham Christian Trust. Registered Charity No.: 212755
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