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 Grassland
Once you have your seed bed ready, sow the seed
either by hand or mechanically. Your choice will depend on the area
to be seeded. If you sow in late summer or early autumn, the grass
and some flowers will germinate immediately and overwinter as seedlings.
Other wildflowers will take 1 to many winters before they germinate.
You may sow seed in spring if circumstances dictate it, but those species
requiring frosts to germinated will not germinate until the following
spring. In the meantime, some seed may die or be eaten!
Your choice of flowering plants may focus on a core of commoner species
with a few others added to provide local variation,
according to the region that you live in. If you have any doubts about
what these are, you can ask your local conservation agencies (see Information
Point) . Try to include species that provide a succession of nectar for
pollinating insects (bees, butterflies, hoverflies etc) throughout the
season.
Creating a meadow from scratch
Unless you have animals to graze your grassland, you will be creating a meadow. The best time to sow a grass and wild flower mix is in late summer to early autumn. A weed-free seed bed is required. If you are using land that has previously been neglected and has become overgrown with ‘weeds’ such as thistles, docks and nettles, or bramble has started to invade, it needs clearing first. You will find that there is a weed seed bank in the soil and many of these weeds will germinate after the soil is worked. If you have a severe weed infestation and you are against using herbicide sprays, you may be better off trying to create a green seed bed first. This is simply a relatively weed-free seed bed created by repeated cultivations over several years. Cultivate the soil and wait for the weeds to germinate, and then cultivate it again before they flower and set more seed. This method is time consuming,uses a lot of resources and requires patience.
 Once you have your seed bed ready, sow the seed either by hand or mechanically. Your choice will depend on the area to be seeded. If you sow in late summer or early autumn, the grass and some flowers will germinate immediately and overwinter as seedlings. Other wildflowers will take 1 to many winters before they germinate.
In order to prevent the grass swamping the young flower seedlings in the first spring and summer, it is necessary to keep the grass short for the first year, between two and six inches. The cuttings should ideally be removed.
After the first year you may need to cut the grass in early spring, depending on the growing conditions, before you stop for the summer. If you have chosen only early flowering species, you might cut the grass at the end of July or early August, otherwise leave it until mid to late September to allow the later flowering species to flower and set seed. Cutting times will vary according to local climate, but it is best not to cut until the flowers have had a chance to set seed.
Creating a meadow in existing grassland
Creating a meadow in existing grassland can be more or less successful. Success will depend on the grass species already present and their density. Wild flower seed will need a chance to come into  contact with bare soil, to germinate and establish themselves. In a grass sward where there is no bare soil, success rates will be low if seed is simply broadcast on. Grasses such as perennial ryegrass and the coarser tussocky species such as cock’s foot are not so good for creating meadows in. Once the first seasons cutting regime has stopped (see above in creating a meadow from scratch) grass growth will be too lush and dense to allow for successful and continued growth of wild flowers. If you are sowing wildflowers or planting plugs into existing grassland, you need to make some gaps of bare ground and ensure that the grass species are suitable to ensure long term success.
Choice of species
Meadows consist of many species which occur in varying frequencies. It is best to choose a core list consisting of the commoner grass and flower species. The most suitable grass species are those with finer leaves such as:
Sweet vernal grass
Common bent
Rough meadow grass
Crested dog’s tail
Red fescue
Your choice of flowering plants may focus on a core of commoner species with a few others added to provide local variation, according to the region that you live in. If you have any doubts about what these are, you can ask your local conservation agencies (see Information Point) Try to include species that provide a succession of nectar for pollinating insects (bees, butterflies, hoverflies etc) throughout the season.
Some species that you might include are:
Black knapweed
Ribwort plantain
Selfheal
Betony
Devil’s-bit scabious
Red clover
Field woodrush
Meadow buttercup
Meadow vetchling
Yarrow
Yellow rattle
Sowing rate
Depending on who you talk to you will be advised of various sowing rates. If you are looking for overnight ‘greening’ of your grassland, the higher sowing rates will be your choice. However, these result in a higher density of grass which will provide more competition for the wild flowers, and in future years less opportunity for the wild flowers to self seed successfully..
 Lower sowing rates have been shown to be just as successful in the long term, and depending on your viewpoint, even more successful than the higher sowing rates. Lower sowing rates will create a sward which in the first few years is more open with patches of bare ground between the grasses and wild flowers. This provides a better chance for the wild flowers to establish, and more natural development of the sward as they self seed into the gaps.
When sowing a mixture of grass and wild flowers, it is usual to use a weight ratio of 4 grass:1 wildflower, which is equivalent to 80% grasses and 20% wild flowers.
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