Chelsea Park Meadow is seeded with perennial wildflowers (and some aliums for early blooms). The first year (2023/24) will look patchy as a meadow needs time to develop. Each autumn, after the seeds have set, the meadow will be scythed and the cut material taken off so that the soil is not enriched. The weeds and grasses that like richer soil will decrease and the wildflowers that thrive on poor soil will increase. The seed list below was carefully researched to benefit a wide variety of insect pollinators and aid biodiversity. Not all on the list will appear, but we include them to show the wide variety that can be supported. Meadows can be large or small, for how to make your own, see HERE.
Eyebright (Euphrasia Officinalis) white flowers July- Sept is a root hemiparasite used to control grass species. Annual which will reseed
Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor) yellow flowers May-Sept, a root hemiparasite and an annual which will reseed
Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) biennial ,white flowers April-June, attracts the Green Veined White and Orange Tip butterflies
Vipers Bugloss (Echium vulgare) biennial, blue flowers May-Sept, attracts bees and the Painted Lady butterfly
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) white flowers, perennial, attracts the Marbled White, Peacock, Small Heath and Wall butterflies
Common bent grass ( Agrostis capillaris), perennial, purplish flowers May-June, attracts the Scotch Argus
Betony (Betonica officinalis) perennial, magenta pink flowers July-Sept, attracts Bees, Brimstone, Green veined white, Small skipper, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell
Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia) perennial, violet blue flowers Jul-Nov, attracts Bees
Cuckoo Flower (Cardamine pratensis) perennial, pale mauve flowers Apr-June, attracts Green veined white butterfly
Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) perennial, magenta pink flowers Jun-Sept, attracts Common blue, Marbled white, Meadow brown butterflies
Cock’s-foot grass (Dactylis glomerata) perennial, green flowers Jun-Sept, attracts Large Skipper, Marbled white, Meadow brown, Ringlet, Speckled wood and Wall butterflies
Common spotted orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) perennial, white/pink/purple flowers Jun-Aug, attracts bumblebees
Sheep’s fescue (Festuca ovina), perennial, green flowers May-Jul, attracts Gatekeeper, Meadow brown and Small heath butterflies
Lady’s bedstraw (Galium verum) perennial, yellow flowers May-Sept, attracts bees, Humingbird hawk-moth, Small elephant hawk-moth
Yorkshire fog grass (Holcus lanatus) perennial, purple flowers May-Aug, attracts Small skipper, Speckled wood, Wall and Marbled white butterflies
Field scabious (Knautia arvensis) perennial, pink flowers Jul-Sep, attracts Marsh fritillary, Ringlet, Small tortoiseshell, Scotch Argus, Hemaris tityus moth
Oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) white flowers Jun-Sept a good source of pollen for many insects
Bird’s-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) yellow flowers May-Sept, attracts bees, butterflies: Common blue, Silver-studded blue, Wood white and Six-spot burnet moth
Marjoram (Origanum majorana or Origanum vulgare), white flowers June-Sept, general bee magnet
Cowslip (Primula veris) yellow flowers Dec-May, attracts Duke of Burgundy, Small tortoiseshall and Brimstone butterflies
Common self-heal (Prunella vulgaris) purple flowers Jun-Sept, attracts Brimstone, Large blue & Wood white butterflies
Common sorrel (Rumex acetosa) red flowers May-Aug, attracts small copper
Devil’s-bit scabious (Succisa pratensis) violet blue flowers Jun-Oct, attracts Peacock, Swallowtail,Small tortoiseshell, Scotch Argus, Small Heath, etc
Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) yellow flowers Jun-Sep, attracts Black masked bee
Wild thyme (Thymus serpyllum) pink flowers Jun-Sep, attracts bees and Common blue and Large blue butterflies
Tufted vetch (Viccia craca) violet blue flowers Jun-Aug, attracts Bombus sylvarum, Apis mellifera and Wood white
Common dog violet (Viola riviniana) violet blue flowers May-Jun, attracts High brown fritillary, Dark green fritillary, Silver-washed fritillary, Pearl bordered fritillary