5 things to enjoy at Painshill in May

1. Bluebells

This bright blue spring flower is in bloom in areas across Painshill. Head to the woodland behind the Ruined Abbey or the bottom of the Turkish Tent to see them. Don’t forget to stop and take in their scent.

2. Wild Garlic in flower

Wild garlic grows all the way along the banks of the River Mole. You can spot the stunning delicate white flowers when walking along the south of the lake and around the Mausoleum and cascade.

3. Wildflower meadows

May is the month that the grass starts to grow long across the open areas at Painshill. We don’t mow it in order to encourage wildflowers. This aids the biodiversity of plants in the area and creates food and a habitat for butterflies, bees and other pollinators. The first to come up are the buttercups and daisies.

4. Daisies along the bottom of the vineyard

One of the first flowers growing in the grass is the daisy. This year there are are heaps on them along the bottom of the vineyard.

5. Nesting birds

Bring along a pair of binoculars on your visit and you can watch nesting birds on the islands in the lake. Painshill is home to ducks, geese, swans and many other lake birds. Although we can’t predict the timings, every year we will have families of coots, cygnets and often ducklings.