Bugdens Meadow

Species-rich meadows at the heart of Verwood in the east of the county.

Location

Ringwood Road

Verwood

Dorset

BH31 7AH

OS Map Reference

SU0905709030

Know before you go

Size

2 hectares

Entry fee

N/A

Parking information

Public car park nearby

Bicycle parking

Grazing animals

Cattle grazing during summer

Walking trails

Permissive open access. Links to path through Bugdens Wood.

Access

Access through gates from main entrance or via Bugden's Copse. There are no formal paths on the reserve, with visitors free to wander between the fields and on into the adjacent wood. However, the ground is wet and boggy in parts and there are several small ditches which may be hidden by vegetation in the spring and summer. RADAR key accessible gate by Ringwood Road to small flatter area of meadow. Kissing gate at southern entrance.

Ticks may be present on site, and cattle are used to manage the site - see our Visitor Information page for more information.

Dogs

No dogs permitted

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times

Best time to visit

Spring and Summer

About the reserve

Escape the hustle and bustle of town life and explore two wildflower meadows in the heart of Verwood.

This flower-rich wet meadow land is just north of Bugden's Copse. Walking through the tranquil reserve you get a great sense of what the area must have been like in days gone by. Butterfly fans rejoice! The wet grassland and scrubby edge of this reserve supports a varied range of colourful wildlife, with meadow brown, gatekeeper and common blue butterflies visiting the scruffy pink ragged-Robin, the creamy white meadowseet and the bright yellow blooms of the, rather rare, dyer's greenweed.

The area is also alive with the buzz of grasshoppers, with spiders, beetles and bugs all busy about their business. In late summer the fields are a haze of the purple-blue lollipop heads of devil's-bit scabious so loved by butterflies, bees and beetles anxious for a nectar top up. A delightful and tranquil reserve to visit at any time of year.

Useful Information

The reserve is located right in the centre of Verwood just off the B3081 Ringwood Road. Heading east from the roundabout with the B3072 from Three Legged Cross, the reserve will be seen on the right hand side just after the Tesco express but before the chapel. Main entrance shown on map as 'you are here'.