Natural Areas
Explore Yew Dell's meadows, forest and trails.
The Pollinator Meadow
In 2017 Yew Dell, with support from the Kentucky Waterways Alliance and the Oldham County Community Foundation, began the creation of a three-acre native grass and wildflower pollinator meadow located at the start of our woodland trails. This area was once a grazing pasture for the Klein family farm.
Our meadow provides a natural habitat for pollinators like honeybees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, which are essential to the human food chain and populating many of the plants we all love. The meadow is the perfect place to relax for a picnic, hunt for insects, or learn how to recreate your own pollinator-friendly landscape at home. Many of the grasses and wildflowers planted in our meadow are also available for sale in our plant market or at other local nurseries. By exploring our meadow and creating similar plantings in your own garden, you can promote healthier pollinator populations.
Be sure to also check out the pollinator backpack from our gift shop for fun, educational activities to do in the pollinator meadow and around the grounds (available spring – fall).
The Woodlands
With more than a mile of hiking trails, several ponds and wildlife galore, our Woodlands are the perfect place to enjoy an afternoon. Most of what is now Yew Dell’s natural areas were productive pasture and farm fields during the heyday of the Klein farm and nursery. The lakes were built to provide water for farm animals.
What you see today is the result of some 30+ years of regrowth after the Klein family stopped grazing livestock on the fields. You can still see signs of that past activity in the form of old fences and common fence-row plants such as Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana). The hiking trails now have bridges, benches, and a board walk built by Eagle Scouts and the trails are maintained by grounds staff and volunteers.
The Woodland Trails are accessible during our open hours and close daily at 3:30 pm.
Reflection Lake
Thanks to our friends at the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund for supporting the construction of Reflection Lake. Rainwater from Yew Dell’s parking lots, building roofs and other impermeable surfaces makes its way here and is then pumped to our production nursery where we grow a long list of plants for our gardens, research, and plant sales. As a bonus, the lake provides serene scenery and has created a new wetland ecosystem in our woodlands.
