Every Year I Return To This WILDFLOWER MEADOW - Here’s WHY
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- Опубликовано: 28 окт 2023
- In this video I return to Norfolk to cut a wildflower meadow that I created 3 years ago.
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Amazed how you do that all by hand. A big thank you to whoever owns the land for providing this incredible wildlife haven.
I am at the end of the day Tracey! It gets less easy each year, believe me, but while I'm able to this will be the method I use (scythe for smaller areas of course) as it's so important to ensure the creatures that benefit from it in summer don't lose out in late autumn/early winter and of course the hay heaps provide extra cover and hibernation opportunities for many. Very best wishes, Joel
Great job Joel with that hay cut and for taking care of most of the critters that were living in this meadow. Well done!
Hi there! We must catch up soon, 2024 in no time at all! Thanks so much for this, it certainly does take more time but these meadows are designed for wildlife and it'd be totally going against the grain (!) if we weren't considering them at this time of year too. Lots will find refuge in the arisings that we piled up at the back :) Hope you and Karen are doing well, very best wishes as always - Joel
Absolutely love this! What a great way to manage the site - more landowners need to do this (and it needs to be made profitable to protect biodiversity). Thanks for sharing!
Great you mentioned to check for ceatures befre cutting Joel , as it is certainly an oversight 5o many. What a special creation. So valuable.❤
Great to see the update on the site. All the animals you found goes to show how important these spaces are. Wish I had a space that large to turn into a butterfly habitat. I can dream. Regards Keith
I'm dreaming with you Keith! I do appreciate that I get to create so much habitat and work with fantastic sites and clients, but there's always a little part of me that wishes these spaces were my own. I'm just glad they're there at all though and each year I've seen the interest and support for creating these habitats grow and grow since I started this business 18 years ago. Things are certainly changing for the better :) Hope you've had a good weekend my friend - Joel
Amazing sharing 👍👍
Thank you, appreciated :)
Wow what a spectacular place, absolutely heavenly. And all that adorable wildlife that you so carefully placed into a new home. I absolutely love that fact. Just how it should be done. I feel honoured to have found this wonderful channel back when I was looking for barrel ponds🐸 Seeing things so beautiful such as this is food for my soul and never fails to warm my heart.
Until next time, thanking you🌻
That’s how it should be done, a walk through and re-homing of what you found it’s amazing how much wildlife will be in 0.5 acre at peak time I bet! Keep the good work up Joel it’s a pleasure to watch 👍🏻💪🏻
Thanks so much, this is one of acres and acres of meadow created now and they're all continuing to thrive, even 12 years on. As you rightly say, it's so imperative to ensure that the wildlife that benefit also don't suffer during any maintenance, and seeing all these creatures on the walk round really is a fantastic reward. I really appreciate your continued support and encouragement, hope you've had a great weekend - best wishes, Joel
Hey Joel! What an amazing place this is! I remember so many wild areas like that growing up [ looooong time ago! } Lovely to see people recreating them in these large areas and even small gardens. What a difference we must all be making. I often wonder where the wild things were hiding while we were wilding our gardens and trying to save them. They seem to find their way to us and hopefully begin to thrive again. Can't believe how many things you found there! Best wishes.
Me too, me too! Absolutely everyone here is making a difference and a really positive one too. There's of course more people that I hope the channel reaches and more people that will consider wildlife when looking after their own garden/greenspace and it goes without saying that it's so good meeting more and more clients that have larger pieces of land that they want to continue to improve. Your garden is proof that if you make little changes it encourages more and the rewards via the visitors and grateful creatures makes it so worthwhile, best thing is that you're passing on this knowledge and experience to younger family members :) Hope you had a good weekend - best wishes, Joel
Thank you.
Hope autumn & winter are not too harsh for you. Mind, lots of flora need the cold to spur them on for spring.
Thank you, and yes there are quite a few seeds that need a cold snap to germinate, luckily if you're planting/sowing natives they're already used to dealing with our climate :) Best wishes, Joel
Terrific management and work alike.
Thank you - really appreciated :) Good to hear from you, hope you and yours are doing ok. Best wishes, Joel
Thanks
How did I miss this?! So sorry Kevin - I really appreciate this, thanks so much - Joel
You must have achieved an awesome step count that day
Haha! Yes, I think so - I really must get one of those counters for when I do meadow cuts again next year, would be good to see! Hope you and yours are well Elizabeth, best wishes - Joel
Good amount of work there, you are very hard working. Went through the initial video after, really good. Hopefully I shall start a nice wild garden section next year
Thank you, glad you found the original video, it's a wonderful site to work on and the clients just want to keep improving it which is not only good for me but more importantly the creatures that thrive on this site. If you ever need any advice on plants, quantities, situation etc always feel free to drop us a line at enquiries@wildyourgarden.com - all the suppliers and growers have been used by me for the last 18 years in my own projects :) Best wishes, Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton thank you, I plan to and will do!
That looks like a big job, but I bet you love ever second. I'm happy to share my 2 acres with everything, expect snakes, doesn't matter how small or harmless. I love my frogs, especially when they literally hang in the water, it's too funny.
Joel and all,your dedication and hard work is really admirable ! On behalf of all our beautiful precious wild life...THANKYOU ! 🐾🦔🐌🦋🐛🐸🐜🐝🐞🦗🕷🦎🐁🐾
Thank you, that means a lot - it's a very rewarding job for sure... remind me I said that in a month or so when temperatures drop significantly and I'm working in wellies! 🤣 Best wishes, Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton Haha I will...well as the saying goes...went it rains,you only get wet once ! 🤔🌧☔
wot,no pond😁 great vid Joel
This client has a river, literally running through the garden, but I am trying to convince them re a pond. They've had a lot of works and improvements to be fair, but a pond would be the icing on the cake of course :) Best wishes, and thank you - Joel
Hi Joel cut back my mini wildflower meadow late September checking before I started the cut.
Can't believe how it's starting to grow already ie Knapweed ox eye daisies etc & have just noticed the other day that the English primroses & cowslip are starting to show there growth as well.
Hi David, so good to hear this, really it is. Your garden is such a haven already and it will keep improving, I promise. Am determined to come back and see you and do another update with you. Very best wishes, Joel
Amazing work Joel it looks hard work that ? 🤣😉 keep up the brilliant work loving the videos as usual keep it going mate 👍🏻🐸💚🐸 soon be spring time again ❤
Thanks mate, really appreciate this :) You've been with me on a project or two and you worked just as hard, give it a month or so and I'll be longing for spring! Lots more projects and videos coming up, just trying to make the most of the remaining light to keep everything on track. Speak soon I hope, best wishes - Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton brilliant keep up the amazing work joel and speak soon 🐸💚🐸
Loved this inspirational video Joel - thank you for showing us the results of wilding our spaces on smaller and larger scales. One question after giving my front wildflower lawn its annual cut - lots of new anthills this year have resulted in compacted lumps of our Devon clay soil all over the lawn. I'm thinking this is all part of the wildlife diversity but should we manage this phenomena in any way or just leave nature to do its thing? Thanks
Hi Theresa - thanks so much. I wish I saw as many anthills as I used to, they're such an important part of the eco-system. I'm sure you know already that these were frowned upon when people were seeking bowling-green lawns. You can absolutely plant seed or wildflowers here, but the open spaces left will be colonised by wildflowers naturally at some point. Plus there's a whole host of birds that enjoy eating ants so I'm really quite pleased that you've asked this question and have considered the wildlife diversity here. Great thinking! Best wishes, Joel
Our very own inspirator! ❤
Haha :) Thanks so much Esther, hope you've had a good weekend, best wishes - Joel
That looks like back breaking work 😮
It certainly was George, I'm kind of used to it with all the client meadow cuts we do but funnily enough each year it gets less and less easy! ha ;) Hope you and yours are well, speak soon I hope - Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton Good to see it’s easier as the more you do this.I guess your muscles become in tune with what you do in life 😉
All good here thanks Joel 😊
Another great video. You’ve cut, cleared and made a heap. Then what do you do with it. Does it stay on site or does it go somewhere else?
Hi Paul, it's kept on site here as further habitat for other creatures, from hedgehogs to slow worms, breeding ground for grass snakes etc. Nothing is wasted :) Best wishes, Joel
Thankyou. I have bought you book it’s brilliant. My aunt has read it and she absolutely love it and her husband does the no mow summer. Think he cuts the grass twice a year. Also the have two ponds. My mother is halfway through the book and shes enjoying it.
@@livingwithosteoarthritis.Hi Paul, thanks so much for this, great way to start a rainy Monday reading this :) Say Hi and thanks to them, it's much appreciated and to know there are more and more garden meadows and of course ponds really makes it all worthwhile :) Very best wishes to you all - Joel
🥰
Hi Joel. Will you answer your emails regarding Sue`s Pond? greetings, WH
Of course! Apologies, trying to get client projects done, and also answer emails from people needing advice, so many to get through but I'll do this asap :) Best wishes, and thank you, Joel
Just a question on the ponds. Why do you triple line some ponds then put soil on top of liner instead of just fill up with water, as you do on other ponds in streams.
Hi Jeanette, all ponds I create never have the liner showing at all, the subsoil is to protect the liner and allow planting directly into it, negating the need for plastic baskets. Hope this helps, best wishes - Joel
What happens to the huge pile of mowed stuff?
Hi Madeleine :) These are called "arisings" and they're left in this pile to provide additional over-wintering habitat for many creatures, including grass snakes etc that will also lay their eggs in this pile in June time as it keeps nice and warm. Nothing's wasted :) Hope you're keeping well, best wishes - Joel
Should you have someone walk in front of you while cutting, to help disperse any wildlife before cutting over them (or through them?)
Hi Kevin, not sure if you saw the beginning of the video but I did say that all 3 of us walked through the whole site removing many creatures, listed at the end. The mower does help disperse via vibration and noise alone of course, but it's imperative to us that a walkthrough is also done first and any creatures moved :)
Thank you for your quick reply - I figured this much but was recently in a discussion here in W Cork Ireland about the importance of walking the property beforehand, many people will just jump to mowing without regard for the wildlife that calls your meadow home. Appreciate you very much!
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton
@@KevinWPruittThanks Kevin, I know exactly what you mean and have seen this "practice" (or lack of!) many a time, same as with the "no mow May", I'm all in agreeance with not mowing excessively but this tagline has meant that so many creatures have lost habitats (and their lives) when everyone gets out the mowers in June, feeling like they've done their bit. I really appreciate the support and encouragement and I hope you enjoy the channel - if there's anything you ever need, advice-wise etc then do feel free to drop me a line at enquiries@hazelwoodlandscapes.com - I'm headed to Ireland next year, but Northern Ireland, but I aim to visit the southern parts very soon. Best wishes, and thanks again - Joel
What do you do with all the hay? Presumably not baling it if you've put it in a pile?
Sorry, should have said about this at the end of the video, it was rather rushed to get this done before the rains set in. But the pile at the back is left in situ to provide additional over-wintering habitat for slow-worms, hedgehogs, amphibians etc and also breeding places for grass snakes :) A small grass heap is easily created after a meadow cut in a smaller urban garden too, and much appreciated by a lot of wildlife. Best wishes, Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton ah thanks. I have about 3/4 of an acre of wild flower meadow. I cut it with a sickle mower and then bale it using a hand baler which is pretty hard work. Do you find your hay pile rots down within the year? I'd also worry about over heating
@@ewanp1396Hi there Ewan, yes it does indeed. Grass snakes will position their eggs at the right depth within the grass to ensure the right temperature for incubation - best wishes, Joel
Thanks!@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton
You mow the whole plot of land??
Yes, but on a rotation as stated in the video, this allows us to maintain the floral diversity and other benefits of meadows to wildlife, but also ensures the meadow areas stay healthy and continue to thrive. In this part of the world we have temperate climate and if left, would revert to trees and shrubs. Hope this helps :) Best wishes, Joel
Put some sheep on it. Will make it grow better next year
Hi there, some of my clients do use sheep but this meadow is in a domestic setting and managed every year, as long as the meadow is created correctly it will only need one cut a year, it's all about the prep in ensuring longevity of any new meadow creation, even in a garden setting :) Best wishes, Joel
The chap with the pink top likes making work for himself! Use a trailer or I use a large sheet of polythene to drag bigger heaps to storage site!
It's a good work-out and the guys like being out and doing this by hand, it ensures that all creatures are considered and to be honest, without the tractor-trailer training it means manual labour is worthwhile :) Best wishes, Joel
@@WildYourGardenWithJoelAshton can you send them around to me please, I have half an acre or so to cut and rake!