Oxfordshire's meadows and woodlands contain 10% of all the flora in England!
One of the reasons I chose to make Oxfordshire my home is that I love flowers. An astonishing 10% of England’s wildflowers and grass resources are found in the meadows and woodlands of Oxfordshire. Oxfordshire is home to rare and valuable habitats and finest species of grassland. Ambitious plans have been in place since 2020 to ensure that Oxfordshire’s wildflower meadows are abundant.
Seeing meadows filled with an abundance of wild flowers makes my heart sing. I was so excited by some of the plants I saw growing wild this year including frog orchid, hybrid lady x monkey orchid, bee orchid, trailing St John’s wort, wild candytuft, autumn gentian, rock rose, lady’s bedstraw, bird’s-foot trefoil and selfheal. The hybrid x monkey orchid is very rare although with the abundance of them growing at Hartlocks Nature Reserve this is difficult to imagine. I have been advised that this is the only place where they can be found.
The destruction of the countryside and changing in farming practices has led to a massive decline in wildflowers and grasslands (since 1930’s it is estimated at 97% decline). The Cotswolds, in particular has been badly affected.
As well as restoring our wildflower meadows changing intensively farmed arable land to grassland could also be a solution to flood prevention.
What’s not to love.
Wildflower meadows contain 50% of our flora
Where to find an abundance of wildflowers:
Warburg Nature Reserve & Hartslock Nature Reserve. June is the best time to find orchids (dependant of weather conditions). It’s best to go when the sun is shining to see the open blooms. The reserves have car parks, visitor centre, toilets and picnic areas.
