The sandy, acidic soils which are prevalent in parts the Gaywood Valley lend themselves perfectly to one of the county’s rarest habitat types: heathland. Going back two-hundred years, extensive heaths were found to the east of King’s Lynn, but today the best remnant in the county is at
NWT Roydon Common – a low and scrubby landscape, largely covered with heather, though also containing small pockets of mire and birch-dominated woodland.