LAT

ULC2 ENG

  • On every site, grass will be mown and removed. In larger, flat places we are planning harrowing soil – to open up by 50% as in most of city lawns soil is heavily compacted. 50 % of bare soil is also recommended before wildflower seeds are sown. In smaller sites, we will use soil aeration, in contaminated places or very eutrophic places we will remove the sod;
  • In every HNV – grassland area we will make an event by creating an urban meadow with the help of local citizen communities. In these events, volunteers will prepare the soil by raking it and removing redundant material and sow the wildflower seeds;
  • Seed material will be collected in various ways – freshly cut grass from good quality EU grassland habitats we use in large places. We will use seed collecting machinery to get seed material for smaller sites. For some special plant species (eg. yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor), we use handpicking;
  • To improve seed germination (in some sites) we will disperse soil from the sites where restoration of EU habitats occurred recently. For example – in places where is bare soil after removal of shrubs and stump grinding (interlinking with other ongoing LIFE projects, e.g. WoodMeadowLIFE). Such soil is poor in nutrients, but rich with the natural seed material and soil microorganisms that promote wildflower seed germination. This will be accomplished without damaging EU habitat (a donor site);
  • In every HNV site, we will build specific ecological niches for invertebrates – insect hotels, old dead tree trunks, gravel piles, etc.;
  • In a suitable spot wetland will be created providing ecological niches for wildlife on one hand and solving the problem of natural water retention during extreme weather event preparedness measures on the other.