If you are curious about creating a wildflower meadow but uncertain how – or perhaps even why – to begin, there are some brilliant resources available online to guide you through the very basics.

Vicky Bowskill, farmland ecology researcher and writer of the blog “Tales from the Quadrat”, has created a short video to describe why meadows are such vital habitats for biodiversity, and how the process of hay making enables wildflowers to flourish.

Moor Meadows, an organisation dedicated to meadow restoration and conservation in Dartmoor, also provides excellent introductory information on their website.

At the Moor Meadows YouTube channel, Plantlife meadow adviser Matt Pitts explains in detail how to make a meadow, including the important steps involved in choosing a site and how to create a diverse wildflower community. To learn more about the diverse species which grow in meadows and may already be on your land, see ecologist Hannah Gibbons’ guide to identifying common grasses. Ecologist John Walters also provides an interesting video explaining the wildflower species which indicate good conditions for meadow restoration, and the fascinating reason yellow rattle is known as the “meadow maker”.

There’s more detailed information and advice on our Resources Pages too.