About the reserve

Lying on a low ridge between Canterbury and the sea, East Blean Wood is one of the richest of all Kent's woodland habitats. A short walk from the car park and you will discover open, sunny glades and wide rides abundant with wildflowers including cowwheat, the food plant for the rare heath fritillary butterfly.

In spring there are carpets of bluebell under coppice trees of sweet chestnut and wood anemone under a canopy of oaks and hornbeam. It is easy to lose your sense of direction as you follow the trail further along oak trees with nesting holes for greater and lesser spotted woodpeckers.  The bushy re-growth of coppice trees provide perfect nesting habitat for many species of bird including the nightingale and blackcap which feed on the rich insect life.

During autumn, the fruits of the trees provide food for the dormouse and look out for fungi growing on the dead and decaying wood of fallen trees.