insect meadow in your own garden lawn replacement

Meadow in your own garden

The meaning of meadows, or why at least a tiny piece of your garden should have a meadow.

The meadow is an ecosystem typical of our landscape. However, the original meadows have practically disappeared. They are being replaced by either grasslands or meadows sown mainly with grasses and forage plants. Eutrophication of the landscape does not avoid meadow areas either. about its effect on the population of bumblebees and other insects.
Garden owners have a huge hidden potential in the case of meadow regeneration, because even a small strip of flowery meadow, mowed in stages, nowadays becomes, without exaggeration, Noah's Ark for all animals bound to the meadow ecosystem. With such a meadow, the garden owner creates a reservoir and gene pool of disappearing meadow flower species. Just imagine if everyone had at least a meadow patch in their garden, what a huge area it would be as a result.
It's not about bumblebees, but if we want to keep bumblebees in the landscape, we must also maintain their natural ecosystems. At the same time, establishing and maintaining a meadow is very easy and costs the gardener the least effort and investment. It's simply a lot of music for so little, and yet so much is missing..

Flowery meadow from the edge of June
All the photos shown here are from a single meadow - to give an idea of the diversity that a garden owner can achieve with a meadow. Photos by K. Kučer

Initial assessment – what is a meadow and what can I expect from a meadow
Cultivation requirements
Nine basic rules for the successful establishment and cultivation of flower meadows
Mowing the meadow
Mulching yes or no
Further care
Recommendations from experts
How to deal with the weed stage in the development of a flower meadow
Sowing date, watering of sown areas

Photo attachment of the establishment of the flower meadow
Photo attachment of the year of the flower meadow

meadow as part of the garden

Initial assessment – what is a meadow and what can I expect from my meadow?

A meadow is a mixture of meadow grasses and herbs. Their species and percentage representation will change over time depending on the nature of the place and the intensity and method of human use. Each meadow is actually completely unique. You will not find two identical ones, even this year's one is never exactly the same as last year's.
Meadows provide insects with food, a place to overwinter and reproduce, and thus serve them throughout the year.
The meadow is not a sterile area, it becomes a home for many invertebrates and small vertebrates. It is also a source of food for birds. Yes, there will be spider webs and anthills in it. No, there will be no more ticks in it, than their occurrence in the immediate vicinity.

The meadow provides children with a new space to play and explore.
The size is not decisive, it can be just an island, a strip, a corner. However, the owner must take into account the higher height of the vegetation, lower seeding density in the beginning and the formation of meadow sods after mowing, because the mowing height must not be below 5 cm. The place for the meadow should be planned and the chosen area should be rather less used for garden activities, also because it will almost seem a sin to enter a blooming flowery meadow 🙂 .
The range of meadow seeds depends on the type of use - meadows intended for grazing livestock contain more forage and fewer flowering herbs. These seeds are not optimal. Flowery meadows On the contrary, they are poorer in forage, the quality of hay for livestock is worse, but they are much more diverse in terms of species and the overall representation of flowers is richer throughout the year.
The selection of flower meadows is huge today. For example, in Markvartice u Sobotky there is a specialized company where the customer can choose from a huge selection of meadow seeds. From a universal mixture that is gradually refined to suit the conditions of the garden, through mixtures designed for pollinators, or meadows suitable for specific habitats such as shade, dry or wet areas, reclamation areas and others. It also offers meadows that can withstand more frequent trampling or mowing and are thus on the border between a lawn and a meadow. The offer even includes meadows by color or specific meadow species, so even the owner of a thematically focused garden can now afford a meadow without having to change his garden plan. Even such a horticulturally refined meadow is better than none….
However, it must be taken into account that even in thematically focused meadows, the representation of plant species changes over time.

Recommendation:

Think about how much you will use the area for the meadow, what the local conditions are (shade, soil rather dry or moist most of the year) and consider your idea of what the meadow should look like - choose the appropriate seed accordingly. It pays to buy quality seed. It is basically the first and last investment, if we do not count the tools for mowing and clearing hay.

flowery meadow, previously common herbs disappearing

a small sample of my own meadow flowers

Growing requirements:

You may be surprised to find that the poorer the soil, the better for the resulting diversity of species. If the soil has been intensively fertilized before, even mulching the top layer will not harm.
We never fertilize the soil before or after sowing, nor do we treat it with herbicides.

Nine basic tips for successfully establishing and growing flower meadows

Nine of them were taken from professionals with permission – published with the permission of Planta naturalis

We establish the meadow in clean soil.
Seeds of natural meadow plants cannot be sown into an established lawn!
Do not mix true flowering meadow seeds with regular grass and clover seeds.
We prepare the soil for sowing meadows as we would for lawns, but we do not fertilize or use herbicides.
The sowing rate of flowering meadow seeds is 1-2 g per m2.
The sowing depth is very shallow - up to 0.5 cm.
Sowing date: all year round, best spring and late autumn.
We mow the meadow with a regular lawn mower or scythe 4-5 cm above the soil surface.
The first year after sowing, mainly the roots of meadow plants and weeds grow above the ground - we mow when the growth is about 20 cm high so as not to suffocate the germinating plants.
The meadow blooms in the second year after sowing - we mow 2-3 times a year to thicken the growth
(1st mowing at the end of daisies flowering)
In subsequent years, we mow 1-3 times a year.

Comment:

The seeding density is very low compared to lawn. You can help by mixing the seed with sand, for example, if sowing sparsely would cause you problems.
It is okay if the meadow does not bloom much the first year. You can find seeds that offer abundant flowering in the first year. However, this is achieved with the help of annuals and such seeds are really only for one year. Anyone who wants to create a true meadow ecosystem must wait a year for full bloom. Patience, but the meadow brings …
You can see how the meadow gradually grows at the end of this article.

Cultivated meadow for the 5th year.

Mowing the meadow

Mowing the meadow in the following years is necessary, without it, dominant species would gradually prevail in the meadow and the meadow would lose its diversity. In a meadow that has not been mowed for a long time, pioneer shrubs such as rose hips, hawthorns and other seedlings planted by birds will gradually begin to appear.
We recommend Staged mowing with an interval between stages of approximately 3 weeks. This will allow the animals to move into the uncut area and the cut area will grow back a little in the meantime. The proportion of the uncut part should be 1/3 or even better 1/2 of the total area.
Meadow after mowing. Mowing with preservation of uncut areas
We recommend mowing with a scythe, it is the most gentle on the meadow. If you buy a quality scythe (and some quality sellers will even sharpen and polish it for you), then you don't have to worry that you won't be able to handle the task. There are many instructions on the Internet on how to mow, sharpen and polish, and there are even courses and competitions in mowing. Polishing a scythe with a polisher is easy, if your grandmother doesn't tell you anything. Anyone can do the sharpening.
The choice of scythe depends on the size of the area you will be maintaining. Mowing with a scythe is a great way to relax in the morning. The sound of the blade sharpening, the scent of flowers, the singing of birds and complete silence... What's more, you will also be doing something good for your body. Even teenagers can do mowing under supervision, but it is better to leave the sharpening to adults.
For small areas, a smaller sickle or scythe will suffice.
meadow sage in a cultivated meadow
If you are afraid of scythes, you can use drum mowers or mowers with a cutting bar or motorized scythes. But there it is already about noise, weight, fuel and vibrations... There are many types of mowers, but they must meet the requirement of mowing to a stubble height of at least 5 cm, which increases the chance of survival of insects in general and accelerates the renewal of the vegetation. Rotary mowers with collection into storage bins or even mulching are not suitable. In addition, mulching inappropriately increases the levels of nutrients in the soil and supports grasses at the expense of flowering species.
We recommend drying the mowed area on hay and then raking it. Your garden will be enriched with a new sensation and the smell of hay will be forgotten. While the hay is drying, animals have the opportunity to move to the unmowed area, many seeds can also ripen and the swath protects the mowed area from unnecessary drying out.
Hay must always be removed from the meadow , it is best to offer it to a breeder, larger quantities to hunting associations, it can be used to mulch bushes and trees or, in the worst case, compost it. Burning hay should be prohibited, just like burning grass, because hay is also home to many insects.

Staged mowing can be used to create paths and patterns, and you can change the garden according to your mood

Mulching

It consists of cutting, crushing and throwing the material back into the vegetation.
This method is not suitable for maintaining a flowery meadow.
When establishing a meadow, the mowed and mulched material prevents further emergence and establishment of small plants. It is also always necessary to be aware that the mowed material contains nutrients that leach into the soil, which gradually leads to a loss of vegetation diversity.

Cress-like sedge

Further care

Nothing - man, stop for a moment, look and admire the work that you have started and which nature itself will complete...
But what can you do… bend down and look at the meadow from an insect’s perspective. Maybe the meadow will be the reason to buy a macro lens 🙂
When you tell your neighbors about your amazing "lawn" and show off your meadow flowers, then together with your garden you give nature a better chance of surviving with us humans than x die-hard insect breeders in houses - be it bumblebees or others :)..

Expert recommendations

The text is taken with kind permission from f. Planta naturalis from their website

How to deal with the weed stage in the development of a flower meadow

It should be said that covering the soil with fast-growing annual weeds from the soil reserve is not detrimental to the development of the meadow . On the contrary, this natural soil cover maintains a humid microclimate that supports the emergence of seeds of meadow plants. Even heavily weeded stands of annual and winter weeds (e.g., marigolds, chamomiles, hedgehogs) allow the development of the meadow. Of course, these weeds need to be mowed during flowering, about 5 cm above the ground and removed from the stand, so that the emerging plants have enough light to grow. The weeding and mowing phases alternate during establishment, so that individual species of meadow plants gradually emerge.
Only some perennial weeds are really unfavorable for the further good development of the meadow. The most persistent are broad-leaved sorrel, which remains in the meadow and unpleasantly affects the appearance of the vegetation. Fighting them is lengthy and usually involves eliminating each plant separately. Less difficult and gradually disappearing from the meadow are perennial weeds such as creeping fescue and common thistle. These weeds can be suppressed by mowing more frequently. We must not forget to mention creeping clover, which is not usually classified as a weed. This plant is very expansive and can quickly take over space in newly established meadows. It is almost impossible to remove it from the vegetation.
The first year after sowing is the most difficult part of establishing a flower meadow. Many gardeners are surprised, even disgusted, by this weed growth. The reason is the fear of ridicule from those around them for what they are growing in their garden. The solution may be to mow the weeds more frequently, which look neater as stubble.

Meadowsweet in a cultivated meadow, third year after sowing

Sowing date, watering of sown areas

It is a frequently discussed topic. It is not possible to recommend one universally suitable date for sowing a flower meadow. It will always depend on the rainfall after sowing. The most suitable time in normal soil conditions seems to be spring from April to June. At that time, the seeds will still use winter moisture, rising temperatures and will probably also be watered by the Medardov rains. In dry areas and on very light soil, it will be better to establish a meadow from autumn sowing so that the seeds can use winter moisture, which quickly disappears in spring.
To speed up emergence in garden conditions by watering would probably mean having a good quality, consistent misting that would resemble natural rain. Single waterings are not very effective and tend to wash away the seeds and form a shell.
For stands grown as "natural", watering is not suitable , because from the very beginning the habitat must shape the stand according to its conditions.
In small areas, it is possible to promote emergence by laying down a non-woven fabric that accelerates germination. This will help retain moisture and heat and improve and accelerate seed germination.

Mallow and yarrow flowers will transform the meadow into pastel colors

Photo documentation of the establishment of a flower meadow

For a better idea, the following photo series shows the transformation of the original unmaintained grassy area into a flowery meadow.

Original state before the meadow was established

Original condition – dominated by only grasses, St. John's wort and in places a local species – orange hawkweed. It was transplanted to the landfill and later returned to the meadow