Welcome to the Water Meadows at Thyme

Written By Lydia Thurlow

The Water Meadow at Thyme are a very special place. As your stroll through the long grasses, buttercups and wild flowers, the air is filled with the heady scent of wild water mint.

Sitting here, you can hear the call of the reed warbler. These small, buff-coloured birds weigh about 13 grams and are easily missed unless you know what to look for. Migrating from sub-Saharan Africa during the summer months, reed warblers form monogamous pairs building their nests rather like hammocks between the reeds that flourish on the banks of the River Leach.

“Having lived here for years, we hadn’t fully appreciated our feathery visitors in such detail until we became involved with the British Trust for Ornithology’s bird ringing project. This revealed an astonishing diversity of wildlife and so clearly demonstrated just how important our wild spaces are for nature's diversity. The fact that these birds had flown many thousands of miles to spend the summer in England and breed here in our water meadows enthralled us. And they are not the only ones: the hobby (one of Britain’s smallest raptors), martins, swallows, swifts and cuckoos all join them on their long flight.

It was a moment when we realised that in conserving these habitats and helping them thrive at Thyme, we support wildlife at home and far away. There is a golden thread that joins us to far flung places - the forests of the Congo, the wetlands of the Okavango or the arid grasslands of South Africa. How wonderful is that?” - Caryn Hibbert


Featured
Wildflower Meadow Walk
Jun 29

The Wildflower Meadow Walk at Thyme

Each Sunday morning, during late Spring and Summer, founder and creative director Caryn Hibbert leads an immersive walk through the rich biodiversity of the Water Meadows at Thyme.

Set within thoughtfully restored farmland, Thyme’s meadows are a brilliant example of ecological restoration. During the warmer months, these wildflower-rich grasslands come alive with oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare), yellow rattle (Rhinanthus minor), meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria), and orchids (orchidaceae), supporting an intricate web of pollinators, insects, and birds. 

Learn from Caryn about the science behind meadow ecology and how Thyme’s sustainable land management practices - such as mowing and traditional hay-cutting - help protect these fragile ecosystems. This immersive walk is not just a feast for the senses, but a living lesson in the beauty and resilience of nature.


For Thyme residents only. Please dress appropriately for the weather and wear sturdy footwear. Book your place through reservations or email reservations@thyme.co.uk.

 

Learn more about this beautiful wild space at Thyme

Featured
Seed Heads, Burrs & Food for Departing Migrants
At Thyme, the land, Meadows, Dr Olly Fox
Seed Heads, Burrs & Food for Departing Migrants
At Thyme, the land, Meadows, Dr Olly Fox

Returning from any walk around the water meadows at Thyme these days, now involves the ritual of removing seeds and burrs from your trousers, sleeves and bootlaces. Although not perhaps the main target of this seed dispersal mechanism, we end up collecting many seed heads and burrs as we walk through the long grass and dense vegetation.

At Thyme, the land, Meadows, Dr Olly Fox
Barn Owl Season
Birdllife, Conservation
Barn Owl Season
Birdllife, Conservation

Few animals have such a strong link with the water meadows at Thyme as the Barn Owl. Present all year around but only fleetingly seen or heard at dawn and dusk when they’re travelling to and from their roosting spots inside tree trunk hollows or the artificial nest boxes provided for them. It has been an unalloyed privilege to spend time in the meadows over the last few years and to regularly see the owls hunting over the rough grassland, quartering up and down the lengths of the fields, hovering momentarily with their head turned towards the earth, before dropping silently onto their unsuspecting prey.

Birdllife, Conservation
The Spring Migration
Birdllife, Conservation
The Spring Migration
Birdllife, Conservation

Although the mornings are still cold, the wind has shifted to blow from the south bringing with it a wave of migratory birds that have been spending the winter in southern Europe or across the Sahara in West Africa.

Birdllife, Conservation
September in the Meadows
At Thyme, the land, biodiversity, habitat, uk meadows, barn owls, Meadows, Wildlife, Farm
September in the Meadows
At Thyme, the land, biodiversity, habitat, uk meadows, barn owls, Meadows, Wildlife, Farm

September is a time of change in the meadows as the floriferous canvas evolves into a habitat for barn owls and other birds, as well as autumnal wildflower species.

At Thyme, the land, biodiversity, habitat, uk meadows, barn owls, Meadows, Wildlife, Farm
Wildlife in the Bleak Midwinter
Wildlife, Fauna, Winter, Nature
Wildlife in the Bleak Midwinter
Wildlife, Fauna, Winter, Nature
Wildlife, Fauna, Winter, Nature
The Wild Side of Thyme
inspirations, conversations, autumn, Wildlife
The Wild Side of Thyme
inspirations, conversations, autumn, Wildlife

It is a misty autumnal morning in ‘The Wildings’ at Thyme and there is a quiet ethereal beauty to the water meadows, woodland and riverbanks of the Southrop Manor Estate.

inspirations, conversations, autumn, Wildlife
 

Patterns of Nature: Water Meadow Interiors

“Through pattern and scent, you can be immersed in stories of the land as well as surrounding yourself with beautiful things. The Bird Hide brings a love of nature together with my passion for English country design.”

- Caryn Hibbert

Our patterns and scent transport you to the wild, created from carefully observed botanical water colours they are the embodiment of English country house style and create interiors that are calm, nurturing and beautiful.

Lydia Thurlow
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Patterns of Nature: Water Meadow collection