2025 - A Good Year for Wildflower?
Wildflower Meadow we manage on the outskirts of Bath with a great showing of Ox-Eye Daisies this year
As the picture above shows… not a bad year at all!
But this ‘unseasonably hot’ weather we see ever more frequently is playing a part in how we manage our wildflower sites.
How does this heat affect our approach?
Essentially, the early season hot and humid weather pushed a brilliant amount of growth earlier than we’d usually expect with great flower density.
However, by July we were beginning to see a wilting of the wildflowers themselves, prompting cuts in early August - a full six weeks before conventional cuts - as we sought to help distribute the seed heads but keep the green matter from this years stems re-entering the soil.
As an advocate of closed-loop systems (recycling green waste on site to aid soil regeneration), the notion of removing nutrients for a meadow to thrive was seemed completely illogical. However, it’s precisely because of this that our meadows can thrive; the more nutrient-deprived the soil, the lower the density of grasses and other greenery which will inhibit wildflower growth.
Unfortunately this hot, humid weather, then followed by incredibly dry periods, drives the growth of these inhibiting species. The growth of grass is our simplest indicator; if the meadows are cut in August, and we see significant grass growth by October, an additional cut and collect early on in winter helps to keep the grass low and less likely to out-compete the wildflower during the spring.
Likewise, the continued safeguarding of species such as Yellow Rattle keep grass growth in check due to their hemiparasitic nature, as this species not only provides brilliant plant cover, but feeds semi-parasitically off of the nearby root systems of grasses.
However, we are seeing a reduction in sowing windows as longer more temperate spells reduce the opportunity for species such as Yellow Rattle or Cowslip to experience the cold cues which are essential for their germination. In our established meadows, this isn’t a game changing issue, but it does reduce opportunity for future intervention / regeneration if there’s a poor crop of naturally dispersed seeds.
The rocketing prices of wildflower or single species seed is an obvious indicator of how some of these ‘staple’ species are becoming increasingly difficult to cultivate; not only does a mild spring push grass and legume growth fast and early (eclipsing wildflower before its established), but the lack of frosts or cold snaps prevent the competing cover such as yellow rattle from germinating. Year on year, with no intervention, we would then see a decline in these species, and a gradual shift towards meadows featuring only the most dominant varieties.
Fortunately, we work with land managers who keep a close eye on what is, and crucially what is not, thriving - and between us there is always a way to improve diversity. Although there’re no universal solutions, we play our part through actively spreading seed heads as we harvest the stems, clearing the ground for optimum flower growth, removing all green waste to reduce soil fertility, or even the introduce additional seed where the land manager deems it necessary.
A thoughtful, reactive approach to changing climate conditions is the only way we can play our part in guaranteeing the biodiversity of these spaces for years to come.
