RABC,

I was inspired to do similar by Islington Council's fantastic effort in
a park beside Holloway Road (the Archway end): an undulating strip
ablaze with all sorts of glorious wildflower colours! The traffic would
slow. People got out their cameras.

So I took this idea back to West Wales with me and ordered a vast
quantity of wildflower mix, weeded and tilled and sowed all in
accordance with the best directions to be found (in fact, I think people
on this group gave me a lot of help). And the next year, wow, what a
show! In autumn I did the prescribed and mowed the whole area down.
Come spring, however, I noted that grasses and buttercups were getting a
grip. I pulled out as much as I could but this wildflower area of ours
was about 50 feet by 30 feet and I am afraid the grasses and ranunculus
won. The second year, only the toughest wildflowers managed to compete.
The third year, we had the most blinding blaze of shining buttercups
for three weeks and in the entire area not more than a handful of
wildflowers.

Meanwhile I was observing the progress of the inspiration on the
Holloway Road while on trips back to London. The council's display too
was never as good in successive years as it was at first. So all I can
say is, a wildflower meadow is great when it works, but pay great
attention to those conditions which are best. In Wales we had acid
soil, a great deal of moisture, and MILLIONS of devouring slugs. (Re.
slugs, none of the lupins in our wildflower mix ever got near to
blooming!)

There are areas in the south of France where wildflowers abound
naturally. And there are fields on certain Greek islands which are full
of them too. So a lack of moisture is clearly one factor. I'ld also
seriously look into the ground-type of those areas.

Good luck.

Eddy.