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 he disappearance of old meadowland over the past 60 years has meant the loss of much of our beautiful, herb rich, native flora.
This wonderful tapestry of grasses and flowers can be achieved in a garden setting, bringing a piece of lost countryside close to home. The secret of success is knowing how to get a meadow established, having low soil fertility and patience! It takes commitment but it's worth it; even in a piece of meadow as small as ten metres square you will see an increase in insects, small mammals and butterflies. In a very small garden I would recommend establishing a flowering lawn, rather than a meadow, with low growing spieces and a slightly more regular mowing regime. |
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Groundwork
To start a meadow, begin with a clean site, ensuring that all perennial weeds have been removed, roots and all. If left, these invasive species will take over from the more choice plants. For best results, the soil itself must have very poor fertility, that is, low nitrogen levels, so that the grass growth does not get too vigorous and the establishing wildflowers will have room to grow.
Looking at the history of a site is a good indicator; for example, a well managed farm field or piece of land that may have grown vegetables will undoubtedly have high nitrogen levels. |
| The presence of nettles also indicates rich soil.If this is the case then either strip the topsoil and use in other parts of your garden - the remaining subsoil is idea, less fertile and with fewer weed seeds present - or try and reduce the fertility by growing and harvesting leafy green crops that will use up the nutrients in the soil. (Make sure you do not use leguminous species as they fix nitrogen and will increase soil fertility). |
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Sowing the seed
Soil type does not matter; just select the appropriate plant species. Prepare the ground as you would for any seedbed and then sow the wildflower and grass seed mix. A mix of 80% grasses and 20% wildflowers is ideal, sown at a rate of 3.75 grams per square metre. (This compares with 45 grams to 60 grams per square metre for a normal grass lawn). Which is why you have to be patient; it takes much longer for the sward to grow and cover the soil than it does with a lawn.It is not uncommon for it to take up to five years. Do not be tempted to sow more as it will simply suffocate the establishing wildflowers and mean more grass, less flowers. Ideally, sow in late september when the soil is warm and damp. Spring is the second best sowing period. |
Meadow management
To manage your meadow in the first year, you must mow when the sward height is over 150mm and take it down to a height of about 75mm. In the subsequent years, cut once or twice a year to retain a diverse, attractive flora. The clippings must be collected and removed.
Cutting must be done with the flower seeds have set and dispersed. The mowing regime will dictate the flowering period of the meadow. Mow a spring meadow from July onwards. For a summer meadow, mow until June and then again from late September/October.
A flowering lawn
Another possibility is just to let your existing lawn become weedy and mow it less often. This is ideal nearer to the house where tall meadow grasses would look untidy and, becasue it can be mown by late June, you can then use the lawn for sitting and play through the summer months.
Plants such as cat's ear, plantain, bugle, self heal (Prunella vulgaris), speedwell and daisy, which grow from rosettes close to the ground, will survive close mowing. So if you stop cutting mid- to late May they will throw up flower spikes and daises will mingle with the bright blue carpet of speedwells and bugle. Then you can return to close mowing within a month or so.
This process can be repeated later in the year and a different range of flowers will appear, such as bird's foot trefoil with its bright yellow, pea-like flowers and the bright orange daisy-like flowers of fox-and-cubs (Pilosella aurantiaca). If there are very few naturally occuring flowers in your lawn, you can add 'plugs' - small plants grown in cellular trays.
For best effect, why not establish a small area of mown lawn for sitting, then allow part of the lawn nearby to flower, then further away from the house establish a flowering meadow. Do include some mown paths through these swards for maintenance, to help to define the shapes within the overall design of the garden and just to enjoy walking through. |
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