Come and be part of a global voice for wild plants and fungi
Plantlife’s No Mow May Movement is back for 2026 – help nature and let your lawn grow this May and beyond!
Over 25% of Britain’s native plants are threatened with extinction – your gift today could change that.
Will you help save endangered species?
Our corporate partners benefit from 35 years of experience in nature restoration so they can achieve real impact.
Become a Plantlife member today and together we will secure a world rich in plants and fungi
Location: Cuxton, Medway, KentOS: TQ 716673What Three Words location: ///hood.pull.drives
Habitat: Chalk grassland, arable fields and ancient woodland
Ranscombe Farm Reserve is Plantlife’s flagship reserve, an Important Plant Area for its arable flowers and part of a new National Nature Reserve.
We’re joining a wide partnership of organisations to launch the North Kent Woods and Downs National Nature Reserve.
This exciting venture unites our beautiful site with ancient woodlands, vineyards and other chalk grasslands in earning national status for being one of the very best nature conservation sites in England.
Ben Sweeney, Ranscombe Farm Reserve Manager said: “It is truly exciting that Ranscombe Farm, Plantlife’s flagship nature reserve, is now part of such a concerted effort to bring together conservation, community and sustainable land use at the landscape scale. Ranscombe Farm, a wonderful patchwork of arable fields, ancient woodland and chalk grasslands, is a globally significant place for wild plants and other wildlife. Not only is Ranscombe the last wild UK site for Corncockle, it also harbours the largest population of the endangered Broad-leaved Cudweed and a wide variety of rare wild orchids.”
Ranscombe is made up of chalk grassland, arable fields and woodland. The chalk grassland is full of Common Rock-rose Helianthemum nummularium, Clustered Bellflower Campanula glomerata and Wild Liquorice alongside Skylarks and Common Blue and Marbled White butterflies.
Our reserve is also believed to be the last remaining natural site in the UK for Corncockle and home to the largest UK populations of Broad-leaved Cudweed Filago pyramidata. The first record in Britain of Meadow Clary Salvia pratensis and Marsh Mallow Althaea officinalis were here too. It really is an arable flower haven!
Sessile Oak Quercus petraea and Hornbeam Carpinus betulus grow in the Sweet Chestnut Castanea sativa coppice. This woodland has existed here since at least AD 1600 and is an important wildlife corridor in North Kent.
Ranscombe Farm is Plantlife’s largest nature reserve in England, occupying a total area of 560 acres on the slopes of the North Downs in Kent. Recently declared as a country park, the reserve provides opportunities for quiet walks amongst attractive countryside with a fascinating flora.
The Ranscombe Farm landscape includes arable habitats, extensive ancient woodland and fragments of chalk grassland. A large part of the site is within the Cobham Woods Site of Special Scientific Interest, and the whole farm is within the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Ranscombe Farm is managed in partnership with Medway Council as a nature reserve, working farm and country park. You are welcome to visit at any time, but please keep to the marked footpaths.
The nearest rail stations are at Cuxton, Strood and Rochester (visit National Rail for more information). There are also several local bus services, details of which can be found at Kent public transport or by calling Traveline on 0870 608 2608.
If you are travelling by car, the main entrance and car park are accessible directly from the A228 shortly before the roundabout (when approaching the M2 from Cuxton).
Please be aware that we are doing some conservation work around the reserve this winter. Large machinery may be operating in this woods. Please pay attention to instructions and signage.
We are excited to have joined a wide partnership of organisations in launching the North Kent Woods and Downs National Nature Reserve.
Ranscombe Farm will sit in the new National Nature Reserve (NNR) which unites a mosaic of ancient woodlands, vineyards and chalk grasslands in a historic environment where people have lived and farmed for millennia.
The North Kent Woods and Downs National Nature Reserve has earned national status because it is one of the very best nature conservation sites in England.
This groundbreaking NNR, full of internationally important wildlife, is the first of its kind to be made up of such a wide partnership of private landowners and public land managers, it is also the first to be partnership led.
We are also undertaking exciting work at the reserve:
All these important work are made possible thanks to the support our members gave to this year’s nature reserves appeal and an additional grant of over £60,000 from the Veolia Environmental trust.
What is the National Plant Monitoring Scheme, why was it developed and how does it work. Join us at Plantlife's flagship nature reserve, Ranscombe Farm to learn more.
Join us for a walk and a tour of a farm with our tenant farmer at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to learn all about regenerative farming.
Join us for a walk around Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to learn about its remarkable history, stories and the plants that call it home.
Join us at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to meet our volunteer team, learn about the essential conservation activities that they do, and find out how you can get involved. This event is being held as part of our 20th anniversary celebration week at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve.
Join us at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to listen for bats using detectors and then, using UV torches, look out for hidden biofluorescence and celebrate our dark skies. This event is being held as part of our 20th anniversary celebration week at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve.
Join us on this guided walk through Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to explore the medicinal properties, folklore, and subtle qualities of the plants that grow here. This event is being held as part of our 20th anniversary celebration week at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve.
Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve
Corncockle at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve
Poppies at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve
Ranscombe in the snow
Snow covered trees in mid-winter
Poppies at Ranscombe Farm, Ben Sweeney, Plantlife
Close up of a Fly Orchid
The reserves team on a visit to Ranscombe Farm
Delve further into the secrets of Ranscombe Farm Reserve with our family expedition walk map
This education pack is designed to help teachers use Ranscombe Farm Reserve for learning outside the classroom.
24 Plantlife
We will keep you updated by email about our work, news, campaigning, appeals and ways to get involved. We will never share your details and you can opt out at any time. Read our Privacy Notice.
