Riddens Lane meadow
While the meadows at the Plough and the Playing Field were already species-rich
and needed only a change in management to improve them for wildlife, we are also
creating wildflower meadows in less species-rich areas by adding wild flowers to the
existing grassland community.
Jean Stewart offered us the opportunity to try this out. Her field’s existing plants indicate that soil fertility is not too high and so we felt that introducing wild flowers typical of lowland hay meadows would be worth a try.
In the autumn of 2012 we strimmed and rotovated 12 strips measuring 5 x 1.5 m
in preparation for sowing a wild flower seed mix. These perennials need a year or so to establish and flower, so at the same time we sowed a mix of cornfield annuals to act as a ‘nurse’ crop and to provide some flowers in the first year.
Future management will involve cutting for hay in the summer and grazing with sheep
in the autumn/winter. The green hay from the flowering strips will be scattered to dry across the meadow, to help spread the wild flowers in subsequent years.
and needed only a change in management to improve them for wildlife, we are also
creating wildflower meadows in less species-rich areas by adding wild flowers to the
existing grassland community.
Jean Stewart offered us the opportunity to try this out. Her field’s existing plants indicate that soil fertility is not too high and so we felt that introducing wild flowers typical of lowland hay meadows would be worth a try.
In the autumn of 2012 we strimmed and rotovated 12 strips measuring 5 x 1.5 m
in preparation for sowing a wild flower seed mix. These perennials need a year or so to establish and flower, so at the same time we sowed a mix of cornfield annuals to act as a ‘nurse’ crop and to provide some flowers in the first year.
Future management will involve cutting for hay in the summer and grazing with sheep
in the autumn/winter. The green hay from the flowering strips will be scattered to dry across the meadow, to help spread the wild flowers in subsequent years.