The Overend sisters had a farm…

The noble aim of Airfield House is to ‘respond to nature, our traditions and the rhythms of the seasons to ignite our sense of natural curiosity, wonderment and playfulness’. Sounds like a slow goal to us! Located in an old, big-house estate in the heart of thoroughly suburban Dundrum, Airfield was inspired by the open-minded and nature-mad Overend sisters, the last residents of the place.

The farm and natural habitat are designed to educate and delight, and the introductory Meet the Animals tour with real-life farmer Eamon Younge succeeds on both counts. Sights and activities change with the seasons, making it ideal for return visits to gauge the passing of the natural year. There are camps, kids’ clubs and family activities every weekend, but even if you’re only visiting for an afternoon in the holidays you’ll love stumbling across this hidden green world that feels like kids’ fantasy and animal husbandry rolled into one.

But adults needn’t feel left out: gardening workshops and summer concerts are in season at the moment, while the last weekend of each month plays host to Sustainable Saturdays, a regular programme of talks and workshops about living lightly. There’s a vintage market, book swap and grow-your-own workshop every week, plus one-off events like tomorrow’s ‘Be a grown-up nature detective’ – because, as Airfield puts it, ‘Why should children have all the fun?’