Useful information

• View map of Hardwick Heath
• Facilities include:
• • children’s play area
  • fishing
  • football pitches, full size and junior, and dedicated changing rooms
  • pay and display car parking (around 70 cars)
  • picnic area
  • toilets
  • trim trail
• Bury Leisure Centre (Abbeycroft Leisure) are responsible for taking bookings for the sports facilities. To book a pitch and to obtain fees and charges please call them on 01284 753496.
• Access for all - the terrain is flat or gently sloping, but the ground can be wet and slippery underfoot.
• Please note:
• • Fishing is allowed on the Pond by permit only. Telephone 01284 757067 for details.
  • The nearest public telephone is situated near the Hardwick Shopping Precinct, towards the A14 (five minutes walking).

For any further information please contact: Parks and Landscapes St Edmundsbury Borough Council, West Suffolk House, Western Way  Bury St Edmunds Suffolk IP33 3YU Phone: 01284 757067 Email: parks@stedsbc.gov.uk

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Grazing

• Hardwick Heath was granted to St Edmundsbury Abbey in 945 by King Edmund as part of a large estate. At this time and for a great number of years to come Hardwick was used for sheep grazing.
  
  
• The Hardwick flock of horned sheep with black faces and legs was considered one of the finest in the county for centuries. The ancient name Herdwyk is thought to derive from the wick or rent paid to the cellarer of the Abbey for the right to feed flocks and herds on the heaths and pastures here.
  
  
• Hardwick remained in the abbey’s ownership until the Dissolution in 1539. After that time the estate was broken up and sold to private owners.
  

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Specimen trees

• The Hardwick specimen tree collection was started by Sir John Cullum and continued by his brother Sir Thomas Gery Cullum.
  
  
• It was Sir John Cullum who planted the first Cedars of Lebanon (Cedrus libani) and Copper Beeches (Fagus sylvatica “Purpurea”) in 1760. One of the Copper Beech trees at Hardwick, now sadly dead, was thought to be the first specimen to become established in Britain.
  
  
• There is a large age gap in the trees on the site, which has many old and young trees but lacks middle-aged trees. In the 1920s many of the trees were sold as standing timber. Good timber trees were cut down, while the large, picturesque specimens were luckily spared because of their limited commercial value.
  

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The pond

• Hardwick Pond is an important historical feature and is represented on maps dating back to at least Tudor times. Its uses must have changed over the years, from a farm pond in mediaeval times to an ornamental feature in later years.
  
  
• Now the pond is an urban wildlife haven for birds, amphibians, invertebrates and plant species.
  
  
• Fishing at Hardwick Heath is allowed by permit only during the open season.
  
  
• An Oriental Plane (Platanus orientalis) overhangs the pond. This tree, originally native to south eastern Europe, was introduced to Britain in the 1550s. It sheds its bark regularly in large plates and its leaves are remarkably tough. This specimen is around 135 years old, which is a very young age for this long-lived species.
  

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The Drive

• This wooded path used to be the main approach to Hardwick House. If you look carefully, you can still see the remains of an avenue of regularly planted trees bordering it. These trees are Common Lime (Tilia x europaea). Replacement trees have been planted in recent years to recreate this feature.
  
  
• Common Lime was often planted in avenues because it is the tallest broadleaved tree in Britain and could be cloned easily. Cloning involved finding a tree of the shape required and then cutting it down. After a couple of years the stump would sprout numerous shoots, each of which could be separated out and planted to form a new tree. This technique was very important because the essence of an avenue is its regularity, so each tree needs to be a similar shape to every other tree.
  

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The Butterfly Meadow

• Old meadows, unimproved by modern agricultural methods, are a very important habitat for plants and animals. As the name suggests, the Butterfly Meadow is a good site for insects in general and butterflies in particular.
  
  
• The field is divided into two sections, which are cut and baled in late summer on alternate years. This allows wildflowers to set seed and insects to multiply.
  
  
• In past years the wildflowers have included:
• • yellow rattle
  • yarrow
  • creeping thistl
  • red clover
  • lesser teasel
  • oxeye daisy
  • wild carrot
  • red campion
  • birds foot trefoil
  • germander speedwell
  • self heal.
    
    
• The most common butterfly species seen here are:
• • meadow brown
  • small white
  • peacock
  • holly blue
  • brimstone
    

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Hardwick House

• In the 1600s Hardwick House consisted only of a small three-gabled cottage. The Cullum family, which owned Hardwick from 1656 to 1921, greatly improved the house and the gardens around it.
  
  
• In the 1920s, Hardwick House was described as “a handsome mansion built in the Elizabethan style” and it included turreted extensions, a large porch, and a Venetian indoor riding school.
  
  
• The last of the Cullums to own the property, Gery Milner-Gibson-Cullum, left no heirs. Upon his death in 1921 the estate became Crown property and was sold to private buyers. In the depression of the 1920s, no buyer for the house could be found. Therefore, it was sadly demolished and sold for building materials.
  

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The grounds and formal gardens

• The grounds around the house included magnificent sycamore avenues, terraces, wrought iron fences, balustrades and a number of large garden urns.
  
  
• The formal gardens, sited at the back of the house, were as grand as the house itself. They included, amongst other features, a statuary, rosary and an Italian garden with a multi-tiered fountain framed by a yew avenue. Some of the yew trees are still present. In the summer the flower beds were a blaze of blossoms.
  
  
• A beautiful multi-stemmed cedar tree, still standing, was a conspicuous feature of the back garden and a focal point for public events, including the annual Bank Holiday Grand Garden Fete.
  
  
• At the back of the house was also a range of long conservatories, well stocked with orange and lemon trees and a variety of select exotic plants.
  

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The Copses

• These copses used to provide cover for game, important in those times when Hardwick was the jewel in the crown of a baronet’s estate. Now they provide shelter for wildlife, particularly nesting birds.
  
  
• New copses with the same mix of tree species have been planted to replace the old trees when they became unsafe.
  
  
• This copse includes three uncommon trees:
• • Fastigiate oak (Quercus robur “Fastigiata”) is a natural mutation of our native oak. It has upright branches, but its acorns grow into ordinary oaks;
  • Lucombe Oak (Quercus X hispanica) is a hybrid between Turkey Oak and Cork Oak. The result is an evergreen oak with a corky bark; and
  • Coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) can grow one metre a year in ideal conditions. The tallest specimen, in California, is 112 metres tall.
    

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Prisoner of War camp

• During and after the Second World War Hardwick Heath was used as a Prisoner of War Camp.
  
  
• Each Prisoner of War camp in Britain was assigned a number, the one based on Hardwick Heath being listed as number 260.
  
  
• The prisoners lived in Nissen huts, structures built of corrugated tin and wood.
  
  
• The camp, housing mostly German prisoners, was in use until at least 1948.
  
  
• After the prisoners left the camp local families were housed in the huts while their homes were rebuilt. The only remains of the camp are the concrete surfaces around the football pitches.
  
  
• Our knowledge of what happened on this site during this period is incomplete, as the available records are limited. If you have some more information to share, please get in touch with the Park Rangers on 01284 763666.
  

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Wildlife garden

• A wildlife garden project was started in 1999.
  
  
• The garden, located near the car park and largely accessible to accompanied wheelchair users, offers visitors the opportunity of looking at wildlife-friendly gardening methods.
  
  
• The main features include a pond and marsh area, a wildflower meadow bed, a log pile, nest boxes, a compost pile, a hedge, and a woodland area with a spring bulb collection.
  
  
• The garden is maintained by volunteers and used by local schools for the sustainable development aspect of the National Curriculum.
  

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Events and activities

• St Nicholas' Hospice’s annual fête and the yearly visit from the circus bring in crowds of children and adults.
• The Ranger Service also organises an annual programme of park ranger events and activities
• If you would like to receive the quarterly park ranger event leaflet, or if you would like to book any of the activities, please contact the parks section by telephone: 01284 757067 or email: parks@stedsbc.gov.uk
• Alternatively leaflets can be obtained from the Nowton Park Ranger Centre (open weekends and holidays only) and the Tourist Information Centre, where you will also find leaflets on local walks in the area.
•  Information on the hiring of Hardwick Heath for a public event.

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