1. Find a suitable part of the garden or sire where you would like to establish a wild flower area.
2. Remove grass or foliage well in advance of sowing your seed
3. Once foliage removed cultivate the soil and then wait 2 weeks to allow andy weeds to germinate. You can then hoe those out or spray off with glyphosate to ensure that when you sow your wild flowers weeds that you don’t want in there will have been eradicated
4. Chose a wild flower mix suitable to where you are sowing (eg is it a wet soil, chalky, clay, shaded) because you want to sow a flower that will thrive in the conditions you have chosen
5. Plant a perennial mix for long term and some annual seed to guarantee you colour in the first year
6. Sow into a cultivated seed b ed, rake over and ideally roll afterwards – then wait. Do not apply any fertiliser as it needs an impoverished soil, not a fertile one
7. Don’t be tempted to sow too thick. Be guided by the g/m2 advised on the label. Less is more when it come to wild flower sowing
8. If you see obvious weeds growing in your patch, feel free to pull these out (eg nettles, docks etc)
Ongoing Maintenance
First Year
1. Cut the sward to a height of 5-7cm every two months or when the sward reaches 15cm. Remove all the cuttings. Dig out or spot treat any perennial weeds.
Future Years
2. Cut to 5-7cm during March/April and remove cuttings.
3. A second cut should take place at the end of the flowering season during August/October. Remove all cuttings.
4. Further cuts in the autumn period to remove untidy growth may be required.
