The Rise of Wildflower in Commercial Landscapes

When we hear the term ‘wildflower’ we think, literally, flowers that grow in the wild without any planting or seeding. Makes sense, right? So why is it recently we have seen a rise in the planting of wildflower for commercial landscapes?

Firstly, “wildflower” meadows can be sold in seed packets, these meadows are of a few mixed species. Predominantly they will not be hybrid or a selected cultivar and will not in any way appear different from the way it does in the wild as a native plant, even though it’s growing somewhere it would not normally.

Glad that’s cleared up.

Due to changes in agricultural policy and practice, during the twentieth century there was a sharp decrease in the variety of wildflowers in the UK countryside. Fortunately, over the recent couple of decades there has been a renewed interest in wildflower habitats which has grown alongside concerns for biodiversity protection and augmentation. This is great news for all involved as there are numerous benefits that we can enjoy from open habitats, such as wildflower, in an urban setting.

Biodiversity

With dwindling populations of native pollinators such as the butterfly, moths and bees, the presence of wildflowers with nectar-rich plants helps support these insect’s habitat. Additionally, wildflower is used as a source of food and nesting material for birds. With some species enjoying the seeds and others feeding on the insects that are thriving off the nectar in the built-up environment.

We’ll touch on this more next but flowering species bring a changing palate of colour to your environment. So, no matter what the season, your grounds will always be blooming and eye-catching.

Attractive Appearance

Naturally, you’d be forgiven for thinking that you’d require a large area of wildflower to create an eye-catching and attractive appearance. This isn’t the case; even small plots of wildflower planting can change the feel of a setting. The aim is to bring a little selection of the countryside to the town or commercial environment.

Picture your mowed grassy areas, if you were to add a little area for flowering around the outside (as an example), the improvements it generates are unbelievable. As mentioned above, it promotes biodiversity, so not only have you added colour and flowers to your garden areas, you’ve invited butterflies and birds along with it too!

Engaging the local community

We are big believers in supporting and promoting the local community, and wildflower has been a huge help in achieving this. Why? On top of the attractive presence provided, you are able to engage the community in your efforts in the collection of seeds for use at a new location or for sale.

You will also be presented with the opportunity to engage and education the local children through nature studies and art classes. Which we have already found to go down a treat! All meanwhile promoting your business with a great community spirit – which is a core value here at SPA Landscaping.

Low Maintenance Cost

Typically, we like to promote wildflower thanks to the above benefits, however, more and more we are advising our customers on the implementation of wildflower thanks to its low maintenance and low cost. Depending on the specific species chosen, you may only need to prune these once or twice a year, massively reducing the labour and maintenance.

Yes, we appreciated that ‘introducing a biodiverse range of flowers around my grassy areas’ sounds complex and costly. The reality though is totally different, especially when you work with a professional outfit to implement this.

We’re hearing from businesses on a daily basis about the times we have helped with their wildflower desires or how they’ve now incorporated wildflower into their commercial landscapes thanks to its growing popularity. This comes as no surprise with the rise of wildflower quickly becoming the number one priority for companies up-and-down the country.

If you would like to learn more about wildflower or how we could help you with your commercial grounds maintenance requirements please contact our team today on 0114 269 9119 or email info@spalandscaping.co.uk

www.spalandscaping.co.uk