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Wildflower meadow: heavy clay bed

#1 · 21st February 2024, 8:25 pm

Hi all,

Have just created basis for a bed (approx 30m2) for wildflowers on the pictured slope. Dug out the grass, moss and top 8cm or so of soil.

Soil is thick, very heavy clay. Currently, very boggy, pasty and clumped after winter of incessant Lancashire rain.

Question is, how to create appropriate till for a heavy clay wildflower mix? I need to remove trailing roots from nearby Azaleas and then intend to wait for a dry week before attempting to break up the clay in prep for sowing. With slope this will be a fork and manpower job I expect. But how fine does the earth need to be for seeds to take? I fear I may not get it anywhere near a crumb-like texutre. My nearby borders were similarly heavy clay, but made more crumbly by adding composted bark and organic matter. I believe this would not be solution for wildflower bed though as large area, and organic matter would be too fertile for wildflower seeds?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Ben

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#2 · 22nd February 2024, 2:51 pm

Quote from Lee Garden Ninja on 22nd February 2024, 2:51 pm
HI @bwreese88

Thanks for your question on how to create a meadow. If you haven't already had a look at my guides on meadow making and how to care for them then check out my guides below.

https://youtu.be/YDBXSsKXMGg

You're right to query whether you can grow a meadow on heavy clay soil. The answer is yes, you can! With the right selection of wet meadow plants.

In fact, a number of natural meadows often flood or end up water-logged, so they are ideal for difficult wet gardens.

The best mix for a wet meadow in terms of seeds are:

Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)

Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)

Yellow Flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus)

Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)

Selfheal (Prunella vulgaris)

Ragged Robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi)

Greater Bird's-Foot-Trefoil (Lotus uliginosus)

Water Avens (Geum rivale)

Devils bit Scabious (Succisa pratensis)

Hemp Agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum)

Marsh Bedstraw (Galium palustre)

Common knapweed (Centaurea nigra)

Sneezewort (Achillea ptarmica)

Marsh thistle (Cirsium palustre)

Jointed Rush (Juncus articulatus)

Purple Moor Grass (Molinia caerulea)

Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor)

Water Dock (Rumex hydrolapathum)

Greater Spearwort (Ranunculus lingua)

You can buy these mixes from specialist meadow suppliers, like this one here.

The better the tilth or finest, the easier it is for seeds to germinate. However, one thing to bear in mind is the time of year to sow seeds for meadows. While many people think spring is the time to do this, September and October are actually better times. This is because a lot of the seeds need stratification to germinate (where temperatures need to plummet before they get triggered to germinate and grow).

Adding bird scarers is also worthwhile once the seed is down to stop them from pecking at it.

Put in as much effort as you can and you will be rewarded. With all meadows using a mix of perennials and annuals, they take a few years to really get going—perennials from seed usually only flower in year two onwards.

Follow my meadow-cutting guide here to keep the meadow at its best!

https://youtu.be/FvxJ5bbLWQY

Good luck!

Lee

HI @bwreese88

Thanks for your question on how to create a meadow. If you haven't already had a look at my guides on meadow making and how to care for them then check out my guides below.

You're right to query whether you can grow a meadow on heavy clay soil. The answer is yes, you can! With the right selection of wet meadow plants.

In fact, a number of natural meadows often flood or end up water-logged, so they are ideal for difficult wet gardens.

The best mix for a wet meadow in terms of seeds are:

Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)
Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)
Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)
Yellow Flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus)
Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)
Selfheal (Prunella vulgaris)
Ragged Robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi)
Greater Bird's-Foot-Trefoil (Lotus uliginosus)
Water Avens (Geum rivale)
Devils bit Scabious (Succisa pratensis)
Hemp Agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum)
Marsh Bedstraw (Galium palustre)
Common knapweed (Centaurea nigra)
Sneezewort (Achillea ptarmica)
Marsh thistle (Cirsium palustre)
Jointed Rush (Juncus articulatus)
Purple Moor Grass (Molinia caerulea)
Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor)
Water Dock (Rumex hydrolapathum)
Greater Spearwort (Ranunculus lingua)

You can buy these mixes from specialist meadow suppliers, like this one here.

The better the tilth or finest, the easier it is for seeds to germinate. However, one thing to bear in mind is the time of year to sow seeds for meadows. While many people think spring is the time to do this, September and October are actually better times. This is because a lot of the seeds need stratification to germinate (where temperatures need to plummet before they get triggered to germinate and grow).

Adding bird scarers is also worthwhile once the seed is down to stop them from pecking at it.

Put in as much effort as you can and you will be rewarded. With all meadows using a mix of perennials and annuals, they take a few years to really get going—perennials from seed usually only flower in year two onwards.

Follow my meadow-cutting guide here to keep the meadow at its best!

Good luck!

Lee

#3 · 27th February 2024, 12:24 pm

We have heavy clay here too - makes working in it a real nightmare sticky, heavy horrible stuff. One of our front borders I have cleared and plan to turn this into a wildflower meadow too. I have used something called 'clay breaker' - its meant to be quite effective at breaking down the soil so we shall see....