Flower meadows without grasses

A flower meadow without grasses might be regarded as a semi-natural wildflower border. With this type of meadow, the restrictions posed by highly fertile soils are greatly reduced, since species with a great competitive power, such as grasses (and also potentially dominat forbs such as Rumex species, and Taraxacum officinale), are removed by weeding. It is the method for obtaining and preserving a refined impact. The desired species mingle freely. Geranium pratense, Centaurea jacea, Sanguisorba officinalis, Leucanthemum vulgare, Agrimonia eupatoria, Senecio jacobaea, S. erucifolius and S. aquaticus, Succisa pratensis, Stachys officinalis, Knautia arvensis, Scabiosa columbaria and many others among the finest indigenous flowering plants can thus be combined in a high-impact flower meadow. Groupings of bulbs and corms may provide an attractive spring effect: Crocus tommasinianus and C. vernus, Narcissus pseudonarcissus, Fritillaria meleagris, Ornithogalum nutans, Gagea pratensis and Leucojum aestivum. The meadow is mown once during the summer, after the seed has set, and once more in autumn. It is weeded in early spring, shortly after mowing. In the course of time the more competitive species, for example Sanguisorba officinalis, Campanula rapunculoides or Centaurea nigra, may gain the upper hand and start pushing out other species. By digging over in spots and sowing or planting again, variety can be preserved. Maintained in this manner, such flower meadows, which lie outside the typical composition of seminatural meadows, can be maintained for a relatively long period of time.