Restring species-rich grassland using green hay Green hay, taken frm a species-rich dnr site and spread n a species-pr recipient site, is anther methd f restring and recreating wildflwer grasslands. Green hay is harvested wildflwers and grasses just as they are shedding seed and still green. The hay is quickly transferred t the species-pr recipient site where it is spread allwing the seed t drp. Green hay can be relatively cheap; hwever the lgistics f transferring the hay quickly need t be carefully planned. This means that the dnr and recipient sites must be clse tgether. Using green hay can be a very successful methd f undertaking grassland restratin and recreatin
Site preparatin All wildflwers have a range f envirnmental limits. If sil nutrients, r ph r water levels differ between the dnr and recipient, this may affect the germinatin and spread f the plants. Undertaking sil nutrient tests is a gd methd t find ut whether the land falls within the expected range f tlerance f mst plants. If the envirnmental limits are exceeded, then seeds may nt germinate, s it is imprtant t research the current cnditins. If the current cnditins are nt suitable fr restratin, g t the infrmatin abut stripping sil nutrients r cnsider wildflwers that can tlerate slightly mre fertile cnditins. suitable prducts and d nt use alngside waterways). It may take mre than ne year t cntrl these plants and shuld t be dne with enugh time fr t be effective. Using herbicides after restratin will als kill wildflwers and grasses. The recipient site is nt suitable if it has a high weed prblem and an alternative site shuld be chsen. Create a shrt vegetatin sward in the recipient field during the preceding autumn and spring, befre restratin. The bjective is t create bare grund - at least 50% - as all wildflwer and grass seed need t tuch bare sil. They als require a lw level f cmpetitin with any vegetatin already present t be able t germinate and survive. Identificatin f a suitable dnr site is imprtant. The dnr and recipient sites shuld have a similar ph, sil texture and misture. There may be limited germinatin if seed harvested frm calcareus grassland is spread nt acidic sil, fr example. The dnr and recipient grasslands need t be in clse prximity t ne anther. Once green hay is cut and gathered tgether, it heats up very quickly which can make the seeds infertile. The peratin f gathering the hay, transprtatin and spreading shuld be undertaken in the shrtest time pssible; recmmended within an hur and definitely within half a day. The future management f the recipient sites needs t be planned befre undertaking the restratin. Apprpriate fencing, access and water trughs may need t be installed prir t restratin r recreatin if future plans invlve livestck grazing. If the site lacks specific minerals essential fr livestck these culd be made available using mineral licks. Cntrl prblem weeds such as dcks, thistles and nettles, either by handpulling, r spt-spraying (seek advice n If yur recipient site is a grassland, create 50% bare grund in June t Mid- July by: allwing livestck (pnies, cattle and sheep) t graze the recipient field, reducing vegetatin grwth. The recipient site shuld nt be pached by livestck hves. Paching (r pugging) is where cattle, pnies and sheep leave pck-marks with their hves in grassland, particularly after wet weather, n clay sils with pr drainage. This denudes large areas f any vegetatin and can cause damage, particularly cmpactin. It can als increase weeds such as dcks. Livestck shuld be remved frm the field if there is very wet weather r if paching in gateways r alng fence lines starts t becme apparent livestck grazing can be by pulse grazing (increasing, and then decreasing, the number f livestck fr a shrt perid f time) r by extensive grazing (a lwer number f livestck are allwed t graze fr a lnger perid) t reduce the vegetatin cver and create bare grund. This is nt an exact science, and livestck shuld be remved if they start t cause damage r there is
n t e n u g h f d d e r. A l t e r n atively, animals culd be added t increase the amunt f grazing and creatin f bare grund. d nt supplementary feed livestck (giving them additinal hay r silage n tp f the vegetatin grwing in the field). additinally r alternatively, scarify the field using a disc and/r chain harrw. Tine harrws can als be used t remve grass thatch. a cmbinatin f livestck grazing and mechanical management is useful in the first instance t create bare grund. If yur recipient site is an arable field, create bare grund in early July by: cultivating the field but nt swing a crp - leave the grund bare. d nt fertilise the land, as wildflwers and grasses want lw nutrient levels cmpared with arable crps. there is n need t graze the recipient site as the bare grund is created thrugh cultivatin. If there are histrical features n yur land, cnsult with the relevant authrity n yur prpsed wrks, as sil disturbance t create bare grund can be damaging t buried archaelgical features. Creating bare grund may stimulate prblem weeds t grw such as thistles, dcks and ragwrt which may need cntrlling. Active restratin / recreatin Green hay relies n taking a hay cut just as the majrity f flwering plants begin t set seed. fr large dnr fields, r where a lt f material needs t be cut, the mst practical methd fr harvesting is t use a tractr and frage harvester. The material can either be transferred int a muck spreader twed behind a tractr fr spreading acrss larger
recipient fields. Alternatively, if a smaller amunt f green hay is required r the material is needed in different fields, it culd be transferred int the back f a trailer and spread by hand, r tied int small bales and spread by hand. Smaller fields, less than 1 hectare, culd be strimmed. The hay culd be transprted and spread frm the back f a trailer. This can take a lnger perid f time allwing the hay t heat up,and may lead t a greater seed drp in the dnr grassland. A rati f 1:3 shuld be used fr dnr site cllected hay t spreading hay n the recipient site. As a cnsequence, a smaller dnr field is needed cmpared with the recipient field. Any clumps f spread green hay shuld be scattered using pitch frks t create an even cvering f green hay. The seeds frm the green hay need t be put in cntact with the sil t germinate. This can either be dne by rlling the recipient field straight after the seed has been spread, r by putting ut livestck, particularly cattle. Management f the dnr grassland shuld be undertaken as usual, treating the green hay cut as if it was a nrmal hay cut. If aftermath grazing is the usual management, this shuld be cntinued. The nly difference between nrmal hay cut management and taking green hay is the timing as green hay is taken slightly earlier. Green hay shuld nly be taken nce every three years frm dnr grassland. Taking it mre ften may start t remve t much seed-rain frm the field and it may becme impverished. The dnr grassland shuld be treated as nrmal during the intervening years t maintain the wildflwers and grasses. Pst-restratin /-recreatin management Mst grassland wildflwers are perennial. Seeds germinating in the first year f restratin may nly frm a rsette f leaves and nt flwer. These plants will blm frm the secnd year nwards. The exceptin t this is yellw rattle, which is an annual flwer and a hemi-parasite f grasses. It helps reduce the number and vigrusness f grasses and is a beneficial plant in grassland restratin and recreatin. Vegetatin grwth shuld be restricted in the autumn f the first year t reduce any cmpetitin fr germinating seeds. This is particularly imprtant in recipient fields that were already under grass as clump-frming grasses, including cck s-ft and Yrkshire fg, can be very cmpetitive and cver newly germinating seeds. Either livestck, particularly cattle r pnies, can be put int the field t eat the grasses if they are getting high, r an extra cut can be undertaken in late autumn. Neither grazing nr cutting shuld be undertaken if this will cause grund prblems, fr example, in wet fields that may be prne t livestck paching r cmpactin by heavy machinery. If there is a gd amunt f vegetatin grwth ver the winter, put a lw number f livestck back nt the recipient site in the first year fllwing restratin. The bjective is just t reduce the vegetatin and nt t create bare grund. Be careful that the livestck d nt nibble yung shts f yellw rattle; they shuld be remved if this starts t happen. During the flwering seasn f April t July in the first year, d nt graze the dnr and recipient fields this will allw flwers t blm, particularly yellw rattle. This is called shuttingup the fields. Frm mid-july / August nwards take a hay cut frm the recipient field. Cutting the vegetatin t early will remve any
yellw rattle that has grwn befre it has had a chance t set seed. Hay making is traditinally undertaken by mwing the field and leaving the cut vegetatin t dry. It shuld be turned at least nce a day t aid the drying prcess and lsen seeds allwing them t drp ut f the hay. The hay is then baled and taken away fr livestck fdder ver the winter. Frm mid-july / August nwards take a hay cut frm the recipient grassland. Cutting the vegetatin t early will remve any yellw rattle that has germinated and grwn befre it has had a chance t set seed. Hay making is traditinally undertaken by mwing the field and leaving the cut vegetatin t dry. It shuld be turned at least nce a day t aid this prcess, and lsen seeds allwing them t drp ut f the hay. The hay is then baled and taken away t use as fdder ver the winter. Leaving wide margins uncut arund the edge f the fields will prvide nectar and pllen fr pllinatrs (bees, hverflies, beetles, wasps etc.) ver the summer and early autumn. Als, cutting hay acrss the field, r frm the centre utwards, allws insects and animals t escape; cutting arund the utside f the field first can trap wildlife in the uncut field centre. Once the grass has started t re-sprut, it shuld be grazed by livestck. This is termed aftermath grazing and helps t cntrl the grasses that can be mre vigrus than wildflwers. If pasture management is desired, the recipient field shuld be shut-up between April and July/August, fllwed by livestck grazing int the autumn. Livestck shuld be remved in the autumn if the fields becme wet t prevent paching the grund. An early spring graze culd be undertaken if there has been grass grwth ver the winter perid but livestck shuld be remved fr the shut perid t allw wildflwers t grw and blm. Green hay is an excellent methd f preserving the lcal identity f wildflwer grasslands. It is als an effective methd f enhancing the wildflwers in a species-pr field. A cncern using green hay is that early flwering plants may have already shed their seeds and late flwering plants may still be in flwer when the green hay is taken. These plants are missed, and additinal enhancement f specific wildflwers may be needed in the future. Fr mre infrmatin see Natural England s TIN063 Sward enhancement: diversifying grassland by spreading species-rich green hay.
Restring species-rich grasslands using green hay timeline Site preparatin Prir t restratin Restratin Pst-restratin Year 1 Pst-restratin Year 2 Autumn Winter Spring Summer Autumn Winter Spring Summer Autumn Winter Spring Summer Autumn Keep the sward shrt Create bare grund Active restratin / recreatin Cut green hay at dnr site, transprt green hay and spread n recipient site Rll recipient field r put livestck n t tread the seeds int the sil Pst-restratin / recreatin management treating the field as a hay meadw Graze fields (remve livestck ver the winter) Shut up fields Hay cut Aftermath grazing (remve livestck ver the winter) Shut up fields Hay cut Aftermath grazing (remve livestck ver the winter) If the grassland is being treated as pasture, instead f hay cutting put livestck n the field t graze frm mid-july / August nwards int the autumn. Cntinuatin f hay meadw / pasture management in future years