BFS 13 – Tussocky Grassland Wildflower Meadow Mix

BFS 13 is a tussocky grassland mix: coarse, tussock-forming grasses, cock’s-foot, tall fescue and Yorkshire fog among them, carry a modest diversity of native wildflowers through the sward. It is designed to recreate the NVC MG1 grassland type, the kind of tussocky pasture typically found on unimproved lowland fields.

It suits moderate to high fertility, circumneutral soils and needs very little management. Cutting once a year, or even every other year in spring, is often enough to maintain the sward. Leaving some tussocky grassland and tall herbs to rotational cutting, rather than mowing everything on the same schedule, helps small mammal populations and overwintering invertebrates. Ant mounds often build up undisturbed in this type of habitat and can attract green woodpeckers, while the small mammals provide foraging habitat for barn owls, a schedule 1 bird species.

Mix specification

• Suitable NVC community: MG1
• Sowing rate: 5g/m²
• Contains: wildflowers 20% (15 species), grasses 80% (8 species)

N.B. All seeds specified in this mixture are subject to availability at the time of purchase.

Wildflowers in this mix

• 6% Achillea millefolium (yarrow)
• 4% Agrimony eupatoria (common agrimony)
• 10% Centaurea nigra (black knapweed)
• 4% Daucus carota (wild carrot)
• 3% Knautia arvensis (field scabious)
• 5% Lathyrus pratensis (meadow vetchling)
• 10% Leucanthemum vulgare (ox-eye daisy)
• 5% Lotus ulignosus (greater bird’s-foot trefoil)
• 4% Lychnis flos-cuculi (ragged robin)
• 10% Plantago lanceolata (ribwort plantain)
• 10% Ranunculus acris (meadow buttercup)
• 10% Rumex acetosa (common sorrel)
• 10% Silene dioica (red campion)
• 5% Trifolium pratense (red clover)
• 4% Vicia cracca (tufted vetch)

Grasses in this mix

• 3% Alopecurus pratensis (meadow foxtail)
• 8% Arrhenatherum elatius (false oat grass)
• 20% Dactylis glomerata (cock’s-foot)
• 4% Deschampsia cespitosa (tufted hair grass)
• 25% Festuca arundinacea (tall fescue)
• 25% Festuca pratensis (meadow fescue)
• 10% Festuca rubra ssp rubra (red fescue)
• 5% Holcus lanatus (Yorkshire fog)