Picking on wildflowers

Here's an article that causes me some difficulty : fad-for-wildflowers-is-ruining-formal-gardening-warns-Professor-of-Horticulture

There is much in it that is absolutely correct and needed saying, and there are parts that seem at best misguided and at worst a deliberate attempt to upset as many people as possible. To be fair to Prof Hitchmough, I know how the media work and I appreciate that what you might say is not always what appears in print. So I'll cut him some slack.

Let's look at the good bits first.

'Non-native planting can be just as good for wildlife'

Absolutely! Habitat specialist species are always going to need their lowland heaths and ancient woodlands, but a lot of generalists are perfectly happy utilising non-native species. Nectar, for instance, is sugar solution whether it comes from a dandelion or a dahlia.

'One of the most important things is to have 'diversity’ so that nectar is available throughout the year.' 

Yup, and the beauty of non-native planting is that you can 'design in' the flowering season, targeting times of the year when forage might be scarce elsewhere. Native meadow species, on the other hand, have spent thousands of years timing their flowering and seed production to coincide with an August hay cut, after which they kind of fizzle.

'The trend for wildlife gardening and Government targets on 'biodiversity’ means that traditional horticulture such as herbaceous borders full of exotic flowers is frowned upon.'

Well, yes, to a certain extent. I myself spent 20 years in the conservation sector preaching the doctrine of 'native is best', and in a way it is gratifying to see so many greenspace managers repeating it. But now I'm old and less idealistic I'm much more inclined to take the view that it's horses for courses. In a rural setting of course native species are the way to go, and local provenance natives if possible. After all, there may well be areas of semi-natural habitat nearby, and the best way to encourage functional ecosystems is to join the best remaining bits together with something appropriate.

And in an urban setting, if you want to try and recreate a native hay meadow, then why not? I for one would not complain. But let's not pretend that it's anything other than another kind of gardening. And if I want to plant a pollinator bed of non-natives, I'd appreciate it if I received the same response; go ahead, why not?

But what I'm finding more and more is that managers of very obviously artificial urban sites, often miles removed from any surviving semi-natural habitat, are repeating the unquestioning mantra - 'native is best'. So it's maybe a little misleading to say that herbaceous borders are frowned upon - there are still plenty around, go and have a look - but certainly when it comes to any provision for wildlife, the message is still very often the same: 'native is best'. And that is in the face of complaints from the public about the tatty look of the meadow in autumn, when flowering has finished and the man on the mower hasn't yet visited.

So those are the good bits; let's have a quick look at the parts I'm not so comfortable with.

Firstly, the headline: 'fad for wildflowers is ruining formal gardening'

Almost certainly journalist-speak, but not very helpful. For a start, it's hardly a fad - it's taken decades for conservationists to get planners and land managers to even think about wildflowers, so let's pray to God they continue, but in an informed way. And in my experience the wildflower bias doesn't affect formal gardening; I haven't come across any park manager insisting that his floral clock be made up of nothing but native species and I can't see it happening.

'Gardens are our nature reserves.'

Well, no, they're not really. They're gardens - that's the point. They can be fantastic or terrible for wildlife, depending on how they're managed, but they aren't a replacement for nature reserves and shouldn't be seen as such. And just as we should expect nature reserve managers to apply best current practice to the management of NNRs, so we should aim to encourage best practice in the garden. The Wildlife Gardening Forum is particularly good at disseminating research in this area.

'the art of cultivating species from around the world carefully managing their growth could die out.'

Hmmm... probably a statement that could only come from someone who's job title is Professor of Horticulture. After all, you've got to watch your back, haven't you?