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Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands

Terraced valley gardens surrounding Tudor/Jacobean manor house. On upper levels, walled croquet lawn, orangery and Italianate formal garden with fountains, topiary and grottoes. Below, C17 summerhouse and fishponds. Lower garden with shrubs and rare trees, leading to woodland and spring gardens. Mapperton is also home to a spectacular rewilding project known as Mapperton Wildlands and a limited number of tickets have been made available for a special 1 day rewilding tour on 29th May. On arrival please meet at the Coach House Café, where you will be joined by Ben Padwick, the ranger at Mapperton. Ben will give an introductory talk and will be your guide throughout your visit.

Owner Info

Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands

About Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands

About Mapperton Wildlands – https://mappertonwildlands.com/
Mapperton lies within the Dorset Area of Outstanding beauty, with magnificent views over the hills and combes towards Bridport and the Jurassic Coast. Mapperton’s landscape had been shaped over hundreds of years by traditional management for food, fuel and timber. This included ancient land management practices such as pollarding, coppicing, hedge laying, extensive grazing by cattle and sheep, fruit harvesting and low input arable farming. The intensification of farming and forestry in the 20th century led to recent large scale changes in the landscape.

In response, Mapperton has decided to change its approach to land management. Mapperton have also been inspired by the success of the Knepp Estate in Sussex, who have pioneered rewilding in the UK. Following some consultancy provided by Knepp in 2020, it will now employ a combination of rewilding, traditional conservation and regenerative agriculture in order to deliver significant ecological benefits over the coming years.

Mapperton will restore species-rich wood pasture by letting large herbivores shape a more wooded and natural landscape, alongside more traditional conservation interventions such as targeted grazing, tree planting and pond creation. Rewilding can be defined as the ‘long-term regeneration of an area using minimum intervention and natural processes’. By introducing a careful mix of herbivores which replicate the intensity of grazing and browsing last seen during the Mesolithic Period, it will restore the degraded landscape and create a flourishing ecosystem.

About Ben Padwick
Ben is the Ranger at Mapperton. Ben studied Game and Conservation Management at Sparsholt for 3 years before working on a 4,800 acre estate in Norfolk. This focused on the conservation of ground nesting birds such as grey partridges, stone curlews and many other species. He then went to live and work in Australia for 2 years on a thoroughbred horse stud before returning home to England in June 2021, with the aim of working on a rewilding project. He joined Mapperton in April 2022.
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Website:

https://www.mapperton.com

Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands features

Location details

Mapperton House,
Gardens & Wildlands,
Beaminster,
Dorset,
DT8 3NR

Directions to Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands
Off A356/A3066. 2m SE of Beaminster off B3163.

Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands openings

For this open day you need to pre-book your ticket in advance. To book tickets please click on the book button below.

Refreshments Light refreshments in the Coach House cafe (inc in admission price).
Admission Adult: £25.00
Child: Free
Opening times 10:00-16:00

Accessibility

  • In the gardens there is partial wheelchair access to the lawn and upper levels.
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FAQs

Payment is by cash only. Please get in touch with the owners for more details.

Yes, coaches are accepted at Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands. Please get in touch with the owners for details.

Sorry, no dogs are allowed in the garden at this time.

Yes, there are various plants offerred for sale at Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands, please enquire with the owners for more details.

Yes, one or more routes at Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands are accessible to wheelchair users.

Yes. Mapperton House, Gardens & Wildlands seeks to offer a sustainable refuge for nearby fauna and wildlife. These sanctuaries host diverse habitats supporting indigenous flora and fauna and nurturing local biodiversity.