‘Coronation meadows’ to revive wildflowers

The Prince of Wales yesterday launched the initiative, which marks the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s coronation, and aims to designate a meadow in every county, and use those sites to restore or recreate other meadows in their area. The UK has lost 97 per cent of its wildflower meadows since the 1930s, hitting plant species and the wildlife that relies on them, and the project also aims to map the pockets of flower-rich meadows that still remain.

The Prince of Wales came up with the idea in response to a report by the charity Plantlife which revealed that Britain has lost 10 wildflower species from the countryside since the Queen came to the throne 60 yearsago.

Under the plans, each Coronation meadow will be a “donor” site, with hay and seed collected and used to restore or create new meadows in the same area.

This process will conserve the local characteristics of grasslands, rather than relying on generic seed mixes which cannot reproduce that diversity.

Charles said: “This year we are celebrating my mother’s coronation so surely there is no better moment to end this destruction and to stimulate a new mood to protect our remaining meadows and to use them as springboards for the restoration of other sites and the creation of new meadows right across the UK.”

Among the meadows identified so far is Muker Meadow, four of 12 meadows which make up Muker Meadows SSSI, near Muker, in Swaledale, North Yorkshire.

Plantlife botanist and conservation expert Dr Trevor Dines described Muker 
Meadows as “one of the most remarkable places I’ve ever visited”.

For more details, go to www.coronationmeadows.org.uk

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