Sounds quite a cool idea, does it not?
Plant a wildflower area in your garden
Every flower counts…
How to create your own mini wildflower garden
Wildflowers are very important as they help maintain a healthy eco-system. They can attract pollinators and other beneficial insects into your garden that feed on the wildflowers and make their home in them. In turn these insects help to fertilise our crops that grow produce for us to eat and the insects are food for other wildlife.
To help you get started, we are giving away packets of wildflower seeds to help you produce your own wildflower area in your own garden. The packet contains 20 grams of seed. Allow for five grams covering a square metre so your packet should cover around four metres.
The packets of seeds will be available for collection (one per household) from Monday 16 September on a first come first serve basis and are available from:
- Eastleigh House, Upper Market Street, Eastleigh SO50 9FD
- Hedge End Town Council Offices, 2000 Centre, St Johns Road, Hedge End SO30 4AF
Please note: We are unable to reserve or post packets of seeds
Prepare the ground
Choose a sunny patch in your garden for the wildflowers to grow. This can be as small or large as you have space for.
Prepare the ground thoroughly, you could choose to scarify a patch of grass or produce some bare ground and remove any weeds from the chosen area. You can do this either by digging or you could use a weed killer. Once the area has been cleared, lightly cultivate by scratching up the surface to create a layer of fine soil ready for seeding. Wildflowers grow in poor soil conditions so there is no need to fertilise the soil. Remove weeds such as nettles, docks and couch grass.
Sowing Instructions
We recommend sowing in Autumn (late September/October). This is the traditional time and will help some of the species which require vernilisation (colder temperatures for germination) to flower and this will ensure a full show of colour the next year.
- Sow the wildflower seed either by hand or with a seed spreader. We recommend sowing the wildflower seed at five grams per one square meter of soil.
- Rake the wildflower seed into the soil and moisten the ground well.
- You could cover the newly seeded area of your garden with netting to protect from birds and cats
- Ensure the soil is kept moist during hot, dry periods for the best germination.
Top tips for sowing wildflower seeds
- When preparing the soil avoid using fertilisers or manure as this encourages grass growth which crowds out the wild flowers.
- Early on you can remove any weed seeds that germinate with a hoe.
- For best growth it’s important that the soil is warm and doesn’t dry out. Ensure you water the soil regularly particularly if there is a hot spell
- Allow your wildflower garden to grow up and flower in the late spring and summer.
Good luck - thank you for helping to plant for pollinators and enjoy your wildflower garden.