Guides

Habitats of County Durham

County Durham packs rare habitats into a small area, from flower-rich limestone grassland on the coast to hay meadows and blanket bog in the North Pennines. Here's a guide to the county's wild places, and what gardeners can learn from them.

County Durham's habitats at a glance

Habitat	Why it matters	Where to see it
Magnesian limestone grassland	Flower-rich grassland on a rock found in very few places in Britain. The region has 307 ha, over 279 ha of it protected as SSSI.	Thrislington and Cassop National Nature Reserves; Bishop Middleham Quarry (Durham Wildlife Trust)
Coastal limestone grassland	The Durham coast holds 92% of Britain's coastal (para-maritime) magnesian limestone grassland, home to breeding little terns.	Durham Coast National Nature Reserve
Sea cliffs	The UK's only vegetated sea cliffs on magnesian limestone, running about 20 km from South Shields to Blackhall Rocks.	Durham Coast Special Area of Conservation
Coastal denes	Steep wooded ravines cut to the sea. Castle Eden Dene, by Peterlee, has the most northerly extensive native yew woods in the UK and over 450 plant species.	Castle Eden Dene National Nature Reserve; Hawthorn Dene (Durham Wildlife Trust)
Upland hay meadows	The North Pennines holds 40% of the UK's upland hay meadows, a habitat now covering less than 1,000 ha in the UK.	North Pennine Dales Meadows Special Area of Conservation
Blanket bog and heather moorland	The North Pennines holds 27% of England's blanket bog and 30% of its upland heathland.	Moor House to Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve; North Pennines National Landscape and UNESCO Global Geopark
Ancient woodland in river gorges	Ancient oak and ash woodland with over 60 kinds of lichen growing on the trees, and red kites and pied flycatchers.	Derwent Gorge and Muggleswick Woods National Nature Reserve
Rivers, wetlands and reedbeds	Old gravel workings on the River Wear, now a reedbed where bitterns overwinter and otters live.	Low Barns, Witton-le-Wear (Durham Wildlife Trust)
Post-industrial sites	Old quarries and pit heaps often grow back as species-rich grassland and wetland, with orchids and butterflies.	Trimdon Grange Quarry Local Nature Reserve

A coast that came back

Colliery waste was once tipped along the Durham coast. The Turning the Tide project, from 1997 to 2002, removed 1.3 million tonnes of spoil and reclaimed 80 ha, and the clifftop grasslands, denes and beaches are now part of the Durham Heritage Coast.

What gardeners can take from it

The county's richest grasslands grow on poor, thin soil, which is why wildflowers struggle in rich garden lawns and thrive where fertility is low. The same idea shapes native hedge planting: hawthorn, blackthorn and hazel from local hedgerows establish well and feed local wildlife. Guides to individual habitats are on the way and will appear here as they're published.

Bring a bit of it home

A garden can borrow from the habitats around it: a wildflower patch on thin soil, a native hedge, a pond. I can help you plan a wildlife garden that suits your plot and your part of the county.

About wildlife gardens

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