National Trust Wenlock Edge

National Trust Wenlock Edge A beautiful limestone escarpment, covered in ancient woodland, flower-rich meadows and miles of footpaths and bridleways. It helps us to learn and grow.

Welcome to the official page for the National Trust - Wenlock Edge. Wenlock Edge is a limestone escarpment that was formed by coral reefs during the Silurian period, 425 million years ago when the climate was warmer and the seas higher. The rock outcrops of the Edge contain an abundance of fossils, including corals, crinoids, brachiopods and trilobites. The majority of the Edge is covered

in ancient woodland, meaning it has been continuously covered with trees since the last Ice Age. Most of the woodland is deciduous and has been coppiced for hundreds of years, providing firewood and timber for local communities. Areas of conifers dot the Edge, having been planted for timber production for the war efforts. Work today is being carried out to remove some of the conifers and restore the much more ecologically important deciduous woodland. There are also small areas of grassland along the Edge, whose nutrient poor soil promote the growth of numerous wild flowers and orchids which in turn support a wealth of invertebrates. Wenlock Edge is covered by a network of footpaths and bridleways, with a number of circular walks of varying lengths. There are three National Trust car parks with free parking at Much Wenlock, Presthope and Wilderhope Manor. For more information, please visit our webpage at :

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/wenlock-edge

We make sure we're available to respond to your comments and queries between 9am and 5pm from Monday to Friday. And sometimes we'll check in at the weekend because we've missed you :) Got a membership enquiry? Please email: [email protected]


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Since the Second World War ended, 98% of flower-rich grassland has been lost in the UK but fragments of rare limestone g...
18/06/2026

Since the Second World War ended, 98% of flower-rich grassland has been lost in the UK but fragments of rare limestone grassland still exist in small patches on the shallow dip slope of the Wenlock Edge. Conservation work in our flower-rich meadows includes mowing, hay making and grazing. This work removes the nutrients from the soil which discourages vigorous grasses and coarse vegetation. By doing this, lime-loving specialist plants can thrive, such as eyebright, viper’s bugloss and pyramidal orchid which you can see are doing well in the photos below. 🌸🌼

We have written a draft Management Plan for the woodlands on Wenlock Edge, to outline our goals and management strategie...
06/06/2026

We have written a draft Management Plan for the woodlands on Wenlock Edge, to outline our goals and management strategies for the next 10 years, and would appreciate any feedback or comments our visitors may have. If you would like to see the plan and offer feedback, please email us at [email protected]

It's Volunteer's Week this week and yesterday we celebrated the best way we know how, with cake! This week is dedicated ...
05/06/2026

It's Volunteer's Week this week and yesterday we celebrated the best way we know how, with cake! This week is dedicated to making sure our volunteers here at Wenlock Edge know how much we appreciate everything they do to help us look after this beautiful place - all year round! Their support is invaluable; they help clear important archaeology, monitor ancient trees, check bird nest boxes, litter pick, install signage, improve paths and much more. So here is a great big THANK YOU to all our volunteers 🥰
Shropshire and Staffordshire National Trust Volunteers (SSNTV)

How many of these spring flowers found in the woods and meadows of Wenlock Edge can you identify? Answers can be found i...
27/05/2026

How many of these spring flowers found in the woods and meadows of Wenlock Edge can you identify? Answers can be found in the comments. 🌸🌼

11/05/2026

The wild garlic is in full bloom now and unlike the leaves, the flowers have a sweet scent. These dainty, white, star-shaped flowers carpet the woodland floor in places and create a beautiful seasonal display. The best places to see/smell this Spring delight are along the Lea Quarry walk and Majors leap walk, they are waymarked walks and you can download the maps from our website here: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/shropshire-staffordshire/wenlock-edge

We'd love to see your photos of the wild garlic 🌱 share them with us in the comments 😊

05/05/2026

We had another stunning evening again last night ☀️ this video was taken during the golden hour and was in Easthope Wood along the disused railway line.

Have you spotted these dainty Spring flowers yet? They are in the same family as Primroses but in contrast these Cowslip...
04/05/2026

Have you spotted these dainty Spring flowers yet? They are in the same family as Primroses but in contrast these Cowslip flowers are held up away from the leaves on tall stems. Found in our meadows and on the woodland edge these pretty blooms are an important early nectar source for bees, butterflies and beetles 🌼🦋🪲

It's been another beautiful day on Wenlock Edge today. The sun is shining, flowers are flowering, the buds are bursting ...
21/04/2026

It's been another beautiful day on Wenlock Edge today. The sun is shining, flowers are flowering, the buds are bursting and the birds are singing 🌱🌸🐦 We love Spring ❤️ What's your favourite thing about the season?

This Autumn our volunteers have been out in the woods searching through the leaf litter for hazel nuts that have been ni...
05/12/2025

This Autumn our volunteers have been out in the woods searching through the leaf litter for hazel nuts that have been nibbled by our resident hazel dormice. At this time of year dormice will be busy scoffing as many hazel nuts as they can so that they can fatten up for Winter. Can you find a dormouse nibbled nut on your next visit? You need an eye for detail as hazel nuts are also eaten by squirrels, birds, bank voles and woodmice so the key is to look for spiraling teeth marks going around the edge of the hole. 🌰🍂

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Much Wenlock
TF136

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