These three adjacent open spaces, beside the River Thames, combine history, superb architecture and some fine wildlife habitats. Fulham Palace is the historic residence of the Bishops of London and is a Grade 1 Listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Its grounds are of considerable horticultural and landscape interest, and also contain valuable areas of wildlife habitat. The most important areas for wildlife are the woodland strips separating the Palace grounds from adjacent Bishops Park and All Saints Churchyard. The Palace grounds also include lawns, a walled garden built in the 18th century, a knot garden of herbs, a Wisteria pergola and an orchard. Bishops Park, which borders the River Thames, contains mature trees and some dense shrubberies, complementing the habitats of the Palace grounds. There is also a pond in the park. All Saints Churchyard is dominated by the 14th century church tower, a famous local landmark. In addition to its historic interest, the churchyard contains a good range of wildlife habitats. There are evergreen avenues of mature holly and yew.
Local Wildlife Site
Accessible Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation
Fulham Palace, Bishop's Park and All Saints Churchyard
Borough: Hammersmith and Fulham
Grade: Borough Grade I
Access: Free public access (all/most of site)
Area: 15.88 ha
Description
Wildlife
The woodland strips in the grounds of Fulham Palace provide ideal nesting sites for a wide variety of common birds. Some fine veteran trees include several magnificent specimens of evergreen oak, pedunculate oak, cedar-of-Lebanon and black walnut. The London rarity common whitlow-grass, a tiny spring-flowering annual, grows on an old gravel path here. Bishops Park contains further mature trees, mostly London planes, and some dense shrubberies. The pond supports nesting mallards and moorhens. Between the graves in All Saints Churchyard is some surprisingly diverse grassland, with crested dog's-tail, as well as wildflowers such as lady's smock, oxeye daisy, bugle and hare's-foot clover, none of which are at all common in inner London. The tombstones support a very good collection of lichens. Two lichens new to science were discovered here in the 1980s, though both have since been found elsewhere in the UK and in North America.Facilities
Information (education service in the museum of Fulham Palace); playground; cafe-bar; toilet; public art; disabled facilities; sculptures/ monuments; historic features
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