Wild Flower Meadow in May

Wild Flower Meadow in May

cowslips in the wild

May is the month when the countryside really starts to prepare itself for summer. In the traditionally managed meadow not far from my home, cowslips are braving the rain and merrily blooming in the hope that the sun will come out for long enough for bees to pollinate them. The grass is thriving in this weather and is beginning to grow strongly and it won't be long before the cow parsley explodes into fluffy white flowers beneath the trees.

In my garden, Dandelions are putting on a defiant show in the lawn and because it's been too wet to get the hoe out, there are red and white dead-nettles flowering beneath the fruit bushes...not that I mind, they're great bee food.

My own little wild flower patches are thriving too.  The Meadowmat patch is now 1 year old and looks very different to when it was first installed.  There are undoubtedly more flowering plants and more species than last year, the grass is less rampant..probably thanks to the yellow rattle in the seed mix and I am estimating that the campion will be in flower in about a week's time...the buds are swelling nicely but I'm not sure if this is a white campion, a red campion or a bladder campion.  All 3 are in the seedmix so I'm playing a waiting game.

campion and plantain almost flowering

There'll be no more mowing in my meadow until at least the end of July.

The area I sowed from seed is less biodiverse but the plants are bigger...probably because it hasn't been mown over the winter.  It looks as though I can expect flowers from yarrow, plantain, campion, scarlet pimpernel and some self-sown dandelions.

I have to confess that I haven't taken a look at the seeds I sneaked onto my farmer-husband's uncultivated land.  All being well I'll be able to check on them over the weekend.  I also have some heartease seeds to sow - I'll probably waft them about when he's not looking.  Interesting development on the farmer front.......he's growing peas this year and remarked that there couldn't possibly be enough bees to pollinate every pea flower on his field......all the more reason to encourage bees with wild flowers says I....with the situation as it is your crops might not be yielding their your full potential.  That pricked his ears up.  Pollinators don't interest him, by profits do!

Meadowmat wild flower meadow FAQ's

Here are some of the questions about Meadowmat that my colleagues from Q Lawns are asked on a regular basis:

When can I expect flowers from my Meadowmat?

Our flowering schedule for Meadowmat indicates roughly which blooms you might see on a monthly basis once your Meadowmat has established. Depending on the time of year it is installed, your Meadowmat may take up to 12 months to reach its full glory. As a rough guide, Meadowmat installed between October and March will usually flower in its first summer.  If it is installed between April and October, you may only have a few flowers throughout the summer because the plants will be busy building up their root systems email us for a copy of our flowering schedule

My garden soil is rich in nutrients, is it suitable for Meadowmat?

Meadowmat performs better in nutrient-poor soil.  Where there is a lot of plant food in the ground we find that the 4 species of native grass in the seedmix grow strongly and out-compete the flowering plants.  If you do want to install Meadowmat on to well fed soil, we would advise you mow regularly and remove all cuttings all year round for the first year.  It will mean that you miss out on flowers for one season but over time it will pay dividends.

What is the best time of year to install Meadowmat?

Meadowmat can be installed all year round…unless the production fields are frozen too hard for us to harvest.

Will my Meadowmat look the same every year?

Probably not; Most of the species in Meadowmat are perennials and will grow back year after year but the beauty of Meadowmat is that the balance of species changes depending on weather conditions, the way it is managed and what seeds etc brought in by the wind and by visiting birds. Like any natural living thing, Meadowmat will evolve and change over time.

Can I add plug plants to increase biodiversity?

You, most definitely can enrich your wild flower area with plug plants and/or annual seeds. 

Are the species in Meadowmat suitable for my garden?

The Natural History Museum has an online list of UK postcodes and the native plants that grow wild in each area.  Most of the species in Meadowmat grow in most UK postcodes and so yes, as long as your garden is nice and sunny, Meadowmat will be happy growing there.

What is your delivery lead time?

If you order online or direct from either Q Lawns or Turfland, Meadowmat can normally be delivered to you within three working days