The Common

Booton Common’s rich fen and wet heathland is home to several unusual plants for East Anglia including adder’s tongue, marsh helleborine, and grass-of-Parnassus. The reserve is a small relic of the wet meadows that would have once run up and down many of Norfolk’s rivers in the past. 

Take a short stroll along the circular path to explore this important area of wet meadowland. The wet, alder carr woodland that borders the common contains a number of plants that are usually found only in ancient woodland.  

In mid-summer, the fragrant orchid with its pink-purple flowers can be found on the reserve. It is one of the few orchids that has a sweet smell, similar to the scent of oranges.