A new German nature park in northern Hesse celebrating the diverse landscapes of the Knüllgebirge.
Naturpark Knüll
Naturpark Knüll is a nature park in northern Hesse, Germany, established on 1 June 2021 as the 104th member of Germany's nationwide network of Naturparke. It encompasses the Knüllgebirge, a low mountain range of volcanic origin whose highest summit, the Eisenberg, rises to 635.5 m above sea level. The park stretches across the districts of Schwalm-Eder and Hersfeld-Rotenburg, framed by the towns of Homberg (Efze), Neukirchen, Breitenbach am Herzberg, and Bad Hersfeld.
The park covers roughly 83,258 hectares, of which just over 35,000 hectares are formally protected. Forests make up about 52% of the area while agriculture accounts for around 43%, producing a richly structured cultural landscape of basalt hilltops, broad wooded uplands, fertile farmlands, and meandering brook valleys. The park markets itself under the slogan "Fabelhafte Vielfalt" (Fabulous Diversity), a phrase that captures the region's small-scale mosaic of habitats.
Ecologically, the Naturpark Knüll harbors diverse woodland types ranging from near-natural, species-rich beech forests on basalt to conifer plantations and acidic beechwoods on sandstone. Its meadows, hedgerows, orchard meadows, floodplain forests along the Fulda, and network of protected nature reserves make it a significant area for biodiversity conservation and sustainable regional development in central Germany.
