ALTHOUGH THIS IS THE STORY of one particular small meadow, the general principles can be applied anywhere. Part of the charm of meadows is the variety of forms in which they appear: the luxuriant flora of a water meadow, for instance, contrast with the mosaic of minuscule flowers to be found on a clifftop. There is a great variety of soil types—from wet to dry, from acid to alkaline, and with varying proportions of clay, loam and sand—which correspond to the underlying geology of the area. Neutral soil exhibits a different range of flowers to both acidic or calcareous (chalk/limestone) regions, for example. Altitude has a bearing on temperature and rainfall, which in turn produce conditions unique to each particular site.
Thus the variety of possible meadow plants is enormous. Several excellent identification textbooks—to each of which I am very grateful—are set out in the bibliography at the end of this book. For ease of reference, meadow flowers, grasses, trees and butterflies are also listed in the appendix.
Taking the wider view, meadows are under threat of ‘improvement’ worldwide, whether from drainage schemes, motorway expansion and building development, or the less immediately obvious but nonetheless damaging applications of pesticides and artificial fertilizers. Creating a modern environment for human beings need not necessarily result in the annihilation of other species with which we share this planet. A more balanced approach would enable increased food production, whilst still leaving areas of less intense cultivation to thrive. We would reap the immediate benefit in the refreshment of the spirit that natural beauty and wilderness brings, and tantalizingly unknown future benefits from as yet undiscovered drugs and other assets inherent in the natural world.
Limestone / Chalk
The soft white alkaline bedrocks of limestone and chalk are generally of low fertility, and therefore correspondingly high in flowering plant species as compared to the normally more dominant grasses and trees. The lack of nutrients in the soil miniaturizes the growth of these flowers and finer grasses such that, unless you wish to, there is no need to take a hay crop in July, since grazing sheep or cattle from September to March will keep the grass down sufficiently for flowers to flourish. Areas of downland are excellent examples of this habitat, rich in a multitude of flora including cowslips, bellflowers, scabious, harebells and fragrant herbs—not forgetting wild orchids.
Sandy Soil
This type of soil is porous and prone to drought; coastal sanddunes are one example. Nevertheless even these can be reclaimed when soil-binding plants such as marram grass are allowed to establish themselves. It may well be that a meadow growing on very sandy soil requires no annual mowing, since the very low fertility restricts grasses and favours a variety of wild flowers. However, to prevent scrub formation, a cutting regime of perhaps every five to ten years might be suitable. Local conservation organisations will have the specialist knowledge for sites in your particular locality. In the event of moderately sandy soil, however, many interesting plants will thrive, including musk mallow, ladies bedstraw, bird’s-foot trefoil, yarrow and the multi-coloured viper’s bugloss. The appropriate drought-resistant grass/flower seed mix needs to be sown in the autumn, to take advantage of winter rainfall.
Clay
Conventional gardens on clay ground can be back-breaking to regularly dig over when wet—as sodden heavy clods cling to the spade, and bake to a hard crust during hot weather. In meadow gardens, the initial cultivation is best done in the autumn, to allow the frosts of winter to break down the clods of clay. Come spring, the soil can be crumbled by raking or harrowing to produce a fine tilth for sowing the seeds. Alternatively, you can use a no-dig system by mulching with carpet, paper, cardboard, black plastic or even corrugated iron. Although unsightly, this will save the back-breaking work by clearing off grasses; this area can then easily be planted or dug for sowing.
Any early problems will soon be forgotten, however, when the entire area is clothed in soft shades of green, gold, pink and white. Stalwarts of such meadows include pepper saxifrage, oxeye daisies, buttercups, cat’s-ear and sorrel.
Loam
Loam is a rich fertile soil, the kind gardeners and farmers alike dream of possessing. Such good quality low-lying land is unlikely to be available for a wild flower meadow, and in such good soil grasses would flourish here to such an extent that flowers would become swamped. In a conventional garden, one would dig over and pull out any grass, but if you are aiming for a mixed flower/grass effect this is impractical. If you prefer to grow wild flowers without grass in a loamy herbaceous border, then of course this would be fine. Also, an area of loam soil could be set aside to act as a seed bed. If a meadow is your aim, however, the fertility can be reduced by either growing (and taking away) a crop of potatoes for a couple of seasons, by consistently removing grass cuttings or hay, or by physically removing the topsoil for use elsewhere. After these initial procedures, a splendid meadow sparkling with cowslip, campion, oxeye daisy, meadow buttercup and lady’s bedstraw, followed later by the blue of field scabious and purple knapweed should result.
Acidic Meadows
Heaths and peat-bogs are examples of strongly acidic soil, but meadows with soil which is acidic to a lesser degree will support an interesting variety of wild flowers amongst their grasses, including tormentil, thyme, heath bedstraw and dainty blue harebells. The adaptable bird’s-foot trefoil, yarrow and meadow buttercup are likely to prevail, with perhaps a clump of heath spotted orchid to add a touch of the exotic.
Damp Meadows
Plants in damp meadows grow tall and lush as the year progresses. This is an ideal habitat for flowers that were once common but now (with the advent of agricultural drainage schemes) becoming scarce. Fringed rosy petals of the aptly named ragged robin flowers mix with white frothy meadowsweet blooms, the pointed spears of yellow iris, and the rich gold of marsh marigolds—also known more picturesquely as kingcups.
The general characteristics of your meadow soil may well be apparent when you dig up a handful of earth: whether it is dark and crumbly, light and stony, or distinctly soggy. However, to delve a little more deeply into its composition and gain further insight into which types of flowers could be expected to do well there, a simple soil testing kit is readily available from most gardening shops.