The Meadow Makers' Network Forum

I dug up the lawn in our small orchard and planted a meadow (using a quality meadow mix). We had an amazing meadow throughout the summer last year.

I cut the meadow right back in October and cleared the cuttings. However, the meadow looks like a normal grass lawn again now, is this normal and how can I help the meadow return in the spring?

Hi, you would expect a meadow to look green and grass-like at this time of year. On closer inspection you should be able to see leaves of the other plants present.
Although, looking at your photos a lot of the plants are annuals, like poppies, which are more associated with arable fields (if they aren't sprayed off) than permanent grassland. These annual plants need soil disturbance in order for the seeds to germinate and grow.
A wild flower meadow will comprise of a mix of grasses and perennial flowers, which come up year after year.
It looks like we could do with some guidance on this as these questions come up quite a lot.
Can you tell us what your meadow mix was?
Tracey

Hi Tracey, thank you for your comments.

I can see evidence of other plants/flowers in the lawn - but I’m concerned there’s too much grass?

I’m unable to locate the meadow mix info now. It was recommended for a cottage garden meadow. There were a lot of poppies in the meadow, but there were some other flowers.

What would you recommend as the best course of action to improve/strengthen the meadow this year?

Tracey is right in saying that the plants in the photos look like annuals. The problem now in giving management advice is not knowing what your seed mix was. If it was just an annual mix then, as Tracey says, they need a degree of soil disturbance each year in order to germinate afresh. However, annuals are sometimes included in wildflower seed mixes as nursery crops - to give a showy display of flowers the first year before the perennials establish and flower - which is often in the second year. The fact that you can see evidence of other of plants in the sward other than grass is positive. If it were my garden I would mow the meadow as low as possible now, collecting the arisings, so as to give everything there the best opportunity to germinate and grow. Then this Summer you'll be able to see what you have and act accordingly going forward. Good luck.

Thank you Steve. I will take your advice.

I purchased the meadow mix from a specialist rather than a general meadow mix from a garden centre, so am hopeful it is a good quality mix.

I included some photos of the plants evident throughout the meadow amongst the grass, in case that helps.

3 x more photos

If you are going to mow, do it very soon, as it looks as though you have wildflowers already coming through. Use the mower at its highest setting. But I would be inclined to wait and see this year - the sward looks quite interesting to me (maybe oxeye daisy and yarrow present?)

That looks promising. You have yarrow, ox-eye daisy, salad burnet, creeping buttercup and some sort of crane's bill (probably Dove's-foot Crane's-bill) in your photos. Steve's advice is definitely the way to go.
Stand back and enjoy!

Excellent news, thank you both for your help and advice.

I would like to extend the meadow further, can you recommend a good cottage garden meadow mix please?

Hi, I see you are in Lincolnshire so a local Devon mix isn't necessary. I have tried seed from landlife before. See https://www.wildflower.co.uk/wildflower ... tures.html
Emorsgate is another supplier and they aren't too far from you, although I don't know where their seed comes from. https://wildseed.co.uk/
They do have quite a bit of helpful information on their website too, which is helpful as ground preparation is key.
Happy seeding.
Tracey