SCIENCE & CONSERVATION Heather Alley, conservation horticulturist Jennifer Ceska, conservation coordinator A long answer to a (not so) simple question: “What is a good wildflower seed mix that you recommend for creating a wildflower meadow?” It is an excellent question, but we always cringe when people ask for good seed mix recommendations because it is difficult to answer. Establishing a wildflower meadow or “pocket prairie” from seed would seem like an easy, natural way to create a patch of pollinator habitat from scratch, but it is unfortunately not easy. The problem with seed mixes are numerous. They contain too many species to establish simultaneously. Most contain species inappropriate for Georgia, namely the non-native common milkweed, which threatens to become invasive in Georgia. They are slow to establish, and the weed pressures become prohibitive. If you are creating a wildflower meadow for pollinator and bird habitat, it is essential to choose Georgia species.
Bad thoughts about wildflower meadow seed mixes 4
State Botanical Garden of Georgia
Seed mixes usually contain well over 20 plant species. These species all compete at once for space, water and light. Generally, only three or four will germinate and survive to full size. This might be fine if you want to throw a bunch of seeds on the ground and see what kind of soil you have, but it seems like a recipe for wasting time and resources. Further, seed mix species selections are incompatible with one another—you end up with a giant plant growing right on top of a 2-foot plant. The 2-foot plant doesn’t stand a chance. Imagine ironweed growing quickly, broadly and 8 feet tall in a season, growing beside butterfly milkweed. When working to enhance a grassland or wildflower meadow, we like to first establish the species in sets with matrix species or “space holder” species—like mints, small goldenrods and smallsized warm-season grasses. We would bring in smaller wildflowers next and wait until these early sets of wildflowers and grasses are well established and growing soundly before bringing in larger wildflowers and grasses. Perennials are slow to establish from seed on site. Many meadow grasses and wildflowers grow deep roots, some as deep as 6 to 10 feet before flowering. You might not see your target wildflowers for years. When we have time pressure to establish our target species, we find