Blogger: Erica Howe, Communications Manager
Finding inspiration can come from the most unusual places! It’s not often that i’m stumped for words, but sometimes, when you’re having ‘one of those days’ it’s not easy to write an exciting piece of prose or come up with a energetic way of describing something.
In an attempt to get out of the office and find a new stream of inspiration, the Communications Team decided to pay a long overdue visit to a new site for the RSPB.
Flatford, on the Suffolk/Essex border, is commonly known for its association with John Constable and the tremendous landscape he painted. Rolling countryside with a mellow palet of colours helps to create the illusion of tranquillity in this quaint part of the country. The reality of Flatford feels more heightened. The landscape is beautiful and serene, but there is something more striking about Flatford that you need to experience in the flesh. The atmosphere and the birdsong instantly transports you to a world where you want to be at one with nature. The footpaths beyond the mill and decadent tea shop wind you through the countryside, and you could be forgiven for thinking that you’d stumbled into a Jane Austen novel.
For all of our lushing over being in the outdoors, we were quick to seek out the new RSPB adventure nestled within the Flatford complex. The project here is to create a unique wildlife garden that will inspire visitors to garden in a more wildlife friendly way and to learn about how to use the space you might have outdoors to best support the birds and the bees. All of which sounds lovely and idyllic but perhaps a bit Chelsea Flower Show? Certainly not! At the moment, the wildlife garden is favoured by diggers and gardeners in high-viz jackets rather than orange-tipped butterflies and stag beetles, but give it a few years, a few months even and it will be magnificent. A wild adventure playground for all of our favourite creepy crawlies! The plants, trees, flowers and meadows here will be examples of how all of us can use our gardens and outdoor spaces. And, other than it being a source of information for those of us wanting to turn our fingers green, it will become a delightful place where kids, families and adults can simply come to experience the outdoors and the wonderful birdsong that acts as a soundtrack to your entire visit.
For a place to be inspired, we certainly struck gold at Flatford, and it would seem it will continue to do so for years to come!
Photo credits: Adam Murray (RSPB)