About

Past Issues Of Wildflower Magazine

Wildflower is published quarterly by the Wildflower Center. Its content is national in scope with articles about the conservation and use of native plants as well as news from the Wildflower Center. A subscription is provided to Wildflower Center members as a benefit of membership.

Root Of The Matter: How To Sow A Wildflower Meadow - Fall 2003

Fall is the time to plant a wildflower meadow that will give you seasons of enjoyment!

1) SELECT an open, sunny site like this bare patch of ground with few existing plants.		2) RESEARCH. Consult plant field guides and native seed catalogs for appropriate species for your site.		3) PLAN. Make lists and sketches. Include wildflowers and grasses in proportions similar to healthy natural native meadows.
4) COLLECT seeds from wild areas to supplement the commercially available seeds and plants. Get permission to enter wild areas.		5) PREPARE the site. Remove unwanted vegetation. Areas with existing native community will be easiest to prepare. Mowing is helpful.		6) RAKE the site carefully to expose bare soil for seed to land on.

Fall is the time to plant a wildflower meadow that will give you seasons of enjoyment!

7) COMBINE your very small seeds with sand so that they are easier to sow.		8) SCATTER seeds - both small and large - according to your design.		9) RAKE the site a econd time to ensure appropriate seed-soil contact.
10) MANAGE the site both initially and on an ongoing basis. Weeding your site is critical to its success.		11) TRY planting some container-grown plants because perennials take a long time to come up from seed.		12) ENJOY! Your natural wildflower meadow will be an unprecedented beauty to behold.
Root Of The Matter is published in Native Plants, the quarterly magazine of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. A subscription to Native Plants is one of many benefits of joining the Wildflower Center as a supporting member. Click here to become a member and begin receiving Native Plants magazine today!

Return to past issues of Wildflower Magazine