WILDFLOWER SEEDING

Perhaps one of the most visually rewarding and environmentally satisfying things we do is creating wildflower meadows. Whilst creating these wonderful locations we have gained a vast range of experience, allowing us to apply this to many different sites.

This level of experience ensures our team recommends only the right wildflower mixtures to meet your requirements, Considerations such as soil type, aspect and the local vegetation found adjacent to the site are considered.

Successful wildflower meadows are developed over a long period of time. During establishment, it is vital that they are maintained to prevent competition from invasive species and to keep soil fertility down.

Wildflower mixes are traditionally based on a mix of non-aggressive grasses and wildflowers sown at relatively low seeding rates of between 3gms and 5 gms per m2. Alternatively pure wildflower mixes are generally sown at 1gm to 2 gms per m2. Additionally, there are high impact flower mixes which, while are not strictly native  mixes, have a big impact visually and environmentally.

If the proposed wildflower seeding area consists of a very fertile soil with a large seed bank within it, it may be necessary to undertake multiple treatments by cultivation, herbicide treatment (or a combination of both) over a prolonged period to ensure that the soil is free of weeds.

Once the seedbed has been prepared and an open textured tilth created, which is free of debris and weeds, the site-specific wildflower mix can be sown; this is generally done in spring or autumn. CDTS South & East operates a full range of specialist seeding equipment either using conventional seeding methods or hydroseeding or a combination of both. Once sown it is important to monitor the developing sward to control invasive species either by spot treatment, hand weeding or cutting.

For more detailed information on the wildflower seeding process please contact us.