Birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus.)
Farmers across Co. Tipperary can obtain free Irish native wildflower seeds at nine different cattle marts here in the county, during the month of March 2019. Some 1,000 farmers will receive these seeds, and are expected to participate in a ‘Pollination Plan’, thus aiding conservation here in Co. Tipperary this year.
The overall aim of the gifting of these free seeds, is to use deep-rooted perennial plants to recycle leached ground minerals, to combat drought and through flowering; to attract beneficial insects onto farmland to assist with pest management.
Following a recent National Biodiversity Conference held last February, Design By Nature decided it would be best to introduce farmers to the benefits of native wildflowers with a simple seed mixture, that would grow across a wide variety of soil types and farming situations.
Free Seed Packs
The information contained with each seed pack will be accompanied by links to websites containing information on farm supports and other research material, latter undertaken at Teagasc, into attracting pollinators to farm crops.
The 30 seed species contained in these seed packs include perennials such as birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus); clover and vetch, latter to fix nitrogen loss; yarrow and wild carrot, to recycle lost nutrients; together with many flowering perennials to attract absent and declining insects life.
Sandro Cafolla – founder of Design By Nature and provider of these free seed packs, is asking farmers that fail or choose not to make full use of these free seeds on their land, to give them instead to local schools or Tidy Towns groups, who would readily use them instead.
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