Wildflower species double and seven times more butterflies seen on Scottish farm thanks to hay technique
The green hay technique is relatively novel in nature restoration initiatives, according to a rewilding charity.
Wildflower species on a farm on the edge of Falkirk have more than doubled and seven times more butterflies have been spotted in the space of a year thanks to a technique called green hay.
Surveys at Pirleyhill Farm, on the Callander Estate, found diversity of the site’s flowers and grass had more than doubled from five to 11 species. Density of the different species had also tripled in the space of a year.
The farm experienced the regeneration using the green hay technique, which involves creating species-rich grasslands by collecting freshly cut hay, rich with native wildflowers and grass seeds, from a donor site and spreading it immediately onto a prepared site.
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Land manager Emma Schneider said: “These results are extremely encouraging and a real validation of our commitment to rewilding here at Pirleyhill.
“For me, it’s a huge opportunity to make a positive contribution to our small corner of the country, and I’m excited to see these positive results in such a short timeframe, resounding proof that the green hay technique is a quick and effective way of restoring degraded grasslands.”
The method is relatively new in nature restoration projects, according to rewilding officer Aidan Maccormick, who works at Northwoods Rewilding - an initiative set up by rewilding charity SCOTLAND: The Big Picture to help landholdings with nature recovery.
Mr Maccormick has supported the team at Pirleyhill Farm for the past three years.
He said: “Green hay is a low-cost, collaborative solution for restoring degraded grasslands to species-rich wildflower meadows, but it’s still a relatively novel approach within rewilding and not yet common practice in Scotland.
“These results are all the proof we need that the approach can be successfully replicated elsewhere. At a time when pollinator populations are in serious decline across the UK, it’s hugely encouraging to see pretty simple interventions like this helping to turn the tide.”
Callander Estate’s manager Guy Wedderburn said: “It’s been inspiring to watch Emma’s ideas take root here at Pirleyhill and to see nature responding so quickly.
“These results show that with a bit of curiosity and the courage to try new approaches, land can bounce back in remarkable ways. As an estate, we’re proud to back that vision and play our part in demonstrating what’s possible for nature recovery.”
With almost 100 partners located the length and breadth of Scotland from Shetland to Dumfries and Galloway, the Northwoods Rewilding Network aims to demonstrate how rewilding can be applied across different scales and settings.
As a collaborative network of farms, crofts and community woodlands, it enables land managers of medium-sized landholdings - usually from 100 to 1,000 acres - to share resources and knowledge.
A project it assisted with last year, Rewilding Denmarkfield, made headlines after the bumblebee population on the Perthshire site increased 116 times on what it was two years earlier.
Statistics from the charity project showed in 2021, when some of the fields were still barley monoculture, only 35 bumblebees were counted.
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