It seems I am not the only one thinking of hay meadows, this week HRH The Prince of Wales launched the Coronation Meadows Initiative in which 60 ‘flagship’ meadows are to be identified, the coronation meadow in each county will be a “donor” site, with hay and seed collected and used to restore or create new meadows in the same area.
Here at Molles we are surrounded by hay meadows containing a wonderful range of flowers – my brother is a keen botanist has suggested that I try to map them to identify all the species, although this would be fascinating to attempt, I think it looks like being a project for a future year.
When we first arrived the hay was cut and removed by a farmer who has since retired, I’ll never forget seeing him arrive in the company of a friend with a similarly vintage tractor….
Nowadays our friends cut and bale the hay leaving us with about a dozen balls for our own use. The cut is usually done in late June once the plants have produced their seeds, after this we graze the donkeys accompanied this year by our Dexter calves so that the fields are fertilized naturally and the grass is kept short for the following years flowers.
One of the numerous ‘bee’ orchids
This year, thanks to the huge amount of rain we’ve had this spring, the fields have been awash with orchids , starting with the early purples we move into a range of ‘bee’ orchids, which are followed by the pyramid orchids that make the field look purple.
Lizard orchid surrounded by hay rattle
We’re currently enjoying the huge lizard orchids and the odd looking deep red Serapias cordigera, that are known locally as ‘Sérapias en cœur’ – which didn’t figure in any of my northern European plant books, thank goodness for the internet’s help!
Serapias cordigera L (a protected species in this part of SW France)
As well as the orchids there are masses of other flowers, including swathes of hay rattle, knapweeds, meadow cleary, tassel hyacinth, marguerites or field daisies, blue flax, buttercups and clover to name but a few.
Tassel Hyacinth (Muscari comosum)
Today I even found the my first star of Bethlehem, a plant that is normally found in the woods below; the joy of living here is that you never know what the next day will bring!
Spiked star of Bethleham (Ornithogalum pyrenaicum)
Molles 