Part of lawn left to grow long in early summer 2004. This was done experimentally - although it was fairly successful, we decided to strip the turf, cover the subsoil with coarse sand and re-sow this area with wild grasses, and insert some wild flower plugs, which we did in Autumn 2004. This has been more successful. A short mown path, strip or boundary beside long grass gives a good contrast and makes it look 'neat' in a garden situation. Our main problem with the long grass is that urban fox cubs (which are found everywhere in London gardens by the way) love to play in it, rushing through it being their favourite game. Good for them, but they beat the grass down and it then does not look like those romantic country wildflower meadows of photographs. But at least they are real wildlife. We cut down the grass by early July, before it turns brown, so that Nitrogen in the green growth is removed and the soil is kept starved. Starved lawns grow better flowers.

© Marc Carlton 2006

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