Meadows blooming with nature and wildflowers

Much of this land was once intensively farmed fields, but thanks to the conservation charity’s efforts, it now provides a haven for wildlife, including native flowers, bees, butterflies and birds.

“Eight years ago, Ned’s Meadow in Minnowburn, just outside Belfast was an intensively managed silage field with slurry being applied and only one or two species of non-native grass growing,” explained lead ranger Craig Somerville.

“We stopped slurry applications and after a couple of years we resowed the whole field with local native wildflower seed.

‘‘Following a number of years of careful management, an annual hay cut and light grazing with cows in April and again in September, Ned’s Meadow has become something really rather special. Today it’s rich with native flowers such as orchids, ragged robin, oxeye daisy and black knapweed and wild grasses such as crested dog’s-tail and sweet vernal grass.’’

He added: “We’ve seen an increase in wildlife in the meadow including meadow brown butterflies, grasshoppers, hoverflies, solitary bees.

‘‘Bird life too has risen, in particular we’ve seen more swallows feeding on the insects as they fly over the meadow.”

This year, significant areas of the gardens at Mount Stewart were not mown during lockdown, due to reduced staffing, which has resulted in these areas being colonised by wildflowers and attracting numerous pollinators.

Changes to the management of the land at Castle Ward and a return to more nature friendly farming practices has also resulted in a wildflower boom. Butterflies like the common blue, holly blue, orange tip and green veined tip are thriving, as too are as buzzards and sparrow hawks.