Minsterley Meadows: Home of the Green-Winged Orchid (UK)

Minsterley Meadows are nationally important and are amongst some of the best flowery grasslands in Shropshire and have survived agricultural changes over the years. This has preserved their diversity and gives visitors a chance to see what our countryside would have looked like in the past. On the 1836 Tithe map of the area the two fields are called Alderley Leasow and May Piece. 

Designated as an SSSI by Natural England. Approximately 5000 Green Winged-Orchids flower in April and May, painting the hillside a rich, vibrant purple. This once common plant is now rare in the Marches. The meadows are also a complex community of increasingly scarce grassland plants and fungi, which support a diverse ecosystem of insects, mammals and birds, many of whom live in the dense hedgerows that surround the site. Waxcap and other grassland fungi show their vibrant fruiting bodies in Autumn and early Winter. 

The meadows came up for sale in 2024. A huge effort by The Middle Marches Community Land Trust (who now own the site), Marches Meadows Group (who are involved with management of the site as a traditional hay meadow) the community, local businesses and a generous grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund have secured the future survival of the meadows. 

The National Lottery Heritage Fund grant has enabled us to engage with the local community and a recently completed meadows mural at the Primary School has been painted by a local artist with design input from all the pupils at the school. The meadows mural is painted on the school’s shipping container, where they store their sports equipment. A forest school provider is also working with the school to engage the pupils further with the meadows. 

Groups of volunteers act as meadow guardians, rangers, undertake conservation tasks and conduct wildlife monitoring utilising tools and skills facilitated by the National Lottery Heritage Fund grant. Traditional Alpine scythes will be used to manage the meadow margins. 

The hay from the meadows has been cut by the same farmer for the last 20 years, the crop is baled into traditional small bales and is sold as herb rich fodder for equestrian use. Aftermath grazing with cattle will form part of the traditional management of the meadows. 

The meadows will act as an “Ark” in the countryside; green hay will be used in future to seed other meadows spreading their diversity and beauty to new and existing sites.

Over the Winter new fencing and accessible gates will be installed. Interpretation boards for visitors to learn about the meadows, find out about future events, and what is happening are being designed for installation next Spring. 

Minsterley Meadows are within The Stiperstones Landscape National Nature Reserve. Shropshire’s varied landscape is a mosaic of habitats which act as refuges for wildlife, Minsterley Meadows is one such site open to the community to enjoy and explore its riches all year round. 

The meadows are owned by The Middle Marches Community Land Trust. Access to the site is free to all. https://middlemarchescommunitylandtrust.org.uk 

Marches Meadows Group are instrumental in the ecological management of the meadows. 

The future survival of the meadows was made possible by generous public donations and a grant from The National Heritage Lottery Fund. 

Saving Minsterley Meadows is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to secure the future of Minsterley Meadows.