Britain is to get its very own savannah – a wildflower grassland across 70 miles of Devon.
“It only seems to be North Devon. Perhaps they’ll do some near Sidmouth?”
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The national media has taken to an inspiring project to restore natural grassland in Devon:
The largest ever UK wildflower grassland will be sown in north Devon, the National Trust has announced. The project involves planting across 70 miles of fields in Arlington and Woolacombe by 2030. It said 1.3 million tonnes of seed had already been planted, working towards its target to create 25,000 hectares of priority habitat by 2025.
Project co-ordinator Joshua Day said the donor fields would positively impact the environment. He said: “The equivalent of 4.5 million acres of species-rich grasslands have been lost nationally over the last 100 years, with only 1% remaining today. This has had a devastating impact on our native wildflowers, with once common species such as eyebrights and cowslips becoming ever rarer, and a disastrous impact on the species that are reliant on these flower-rich habitats such as bumblebees and other pollinators.”
National Trust to sow UK’s largest wildflower grassland in Devon – BBC News
Britain is to get its very own savannah – a wildflower grassland across 70 miles of North Devon. While we may associate ‘savannah’ with the majestic plains of the Serengeti, the National Trust says Britain’s grasslands are no less impressive. But Britain has lost around 99 per cent of its wild grasslands and the wild flowers which grown on it, causing the ‘colour to drain from the countryside.’
The new plan, to be completed by 2030, is an attempt to help stop the loss of wild plants such as eyebrights, cowslips and Bugloss’ viper and help rare bees and birds which depend on them. It is hoped its revival of its ‘species rich grassland’ – defined as having 15 plant species per square metre – will help wildlife including voles, kestrels and bats to thrive.
The local press is also enthusiastic:
Devon will soon be home to UK’s largest ever wildflower grassland – Devon Live
With lots more information on the National Trust’s own pages:
Meadows and wildflowers in the South West | National Trust
As a local correspondent notes:
It only seems to be North Devon. Perhaps they’ll do some near Sidmouth?