WORK has been taking place to support the development of wildflower meadow sites across Denbighshire.

Denbighshire County Council’s Wildflower Meadows project currently looks after about 120 meadows (more than 70 acres) across the county, maintained by Denbighshire’s Streetscene Teams, from Prestatyn to Corwen, Rhyl to Llangollen, and Denbigh to Llandegla.

The project is part of the council’s climate and nature strategy ambition to be net carbon zero by 2030 and to help nature’s recovery.

The project aims to protect and aid nature recovery across the county by helping wildflowers and insects to thrive and also give greater support to pollinators who are important to the human food supply chain.

They also provide areas for education, leisure and wellbeing for our communities to enjoy and benefit from local access to nature.

Wildflower meadows in the UK have declined by 97 per cent since the 1930s and are a vital habitat for pollinators and other insects which support other wildlife.

With the most recent State of Nature Report putting Wales ranked as 16th worst of 240 countries for nature loss, the council says this action is urgent.

The Council’s biodiversity team has looked at the development status of all the sites this year and a number of meadows were picked for an additional mid-summer cut and collect.

This work has been taking place in June and July to help remove nutrients from the sites to help suppress grasses and give the wildflowers space to grow.

There is planned enhancement work for some sites to take place before the start of the next wildflower meadow season, in early spring next year.

A review of all meadows will take place during October and November to determine if any extra cut and collect work would be beneficial, for site development and management.

Following this the sites will be cut and collected at the start of the year through to March (dependent on weather) before the start of next season to try and further strip these sites of nutrients to suppress grass growth and give the wildflowers a chance to establish.

Cllr Barry Mellor, lead member for environment and transport, said: “A lot of hard work has gone into managing these sites across council services and we are taking this season as the time to bring the lesser developed meadows further forward.

“All of our meadows support the creation of connected corridors for nature to thrive across our urban areas.

“This project has great support from our schools who are eager to follow and learn about how it not just helps nature but also our communities as well.

“The wildflower plants that develop through this management will add diversity and colour across sites for the community to enjoy, along with the pollinators at risk who help put food on our tables.

“By spending time now to give a helping hand to these sites, our meadows will flourish to support the equal wellbeing of residents and wildlife for both enjoy now, and most importantly, for our future generations in the shape of our Denbighshire school pupils.”