Meadow Revival
“There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight
To me did seem
Apparelled in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is not now as it hath been of yore;–
Turn wheresoe’er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more.”
William Wordsworth
From Ode on Intimations of Immortality
Meadowy metaphors used to be rife in English poetry. Wordworth’s were the days when wildflowers pranced on any land not trodden on or nibbled at for more than a season. His inability to see meadows as they “hath been of yore” was no doubt metaphysical, and not because they had all been ravaged by weeds. No, that’s more a 20th Century problem.
The problem is mainly that wildflowers thrive on unfertile soil, whereas weeds thrive on fertile soil. The increased use of fertilisers has made the remaining scraps of disused land home to aggressive, weedy tenants rather than poetic, meadow flowers.
As I discovered in Saturday’s Guardian, budding Wordsworths might still have something to write about in future years. Rae Spencer-Jones describes in Where The Wild Things Are how British motorway embankments are turning into meadowy havens, and abandoned land in built-up areas is winning the hearts of local residents with its new-found beauty.
In conjunction with other organisations like The Woodland Trust, the environmental charity Landlife has a wealth of initiatives aimed bringing wildflowers back to our countryside, including topsoil inversion: turning over the soil to reveal the less fertile layers. The charity dedicated 5 acres of land as a National Wildflower Centre in Court Hey Park, just outside Liverpool. They also supply seeds online for growing such delights as Bats-In-The-Belfry, Corncockle, Musk Mallow and Teasel. Truly irresistible.
Image source: Kedar Misani
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March 9th, 2007 at 3:06 am
A very interesting post.
They say in New Zealand before colonisation, which is only the best part of 200 years ago, the “dawn chorus,” or noise from the birds in the morning, was so loud that the first explorers rowed back out to their boats to get some sleep, and the forest canopy so thick you could literally walk across vast parts of the countryside on top of the trees.
I do look forward to reading more.
March 11th, 2007 at 6:18 am
Beautiful blog. I enjoy how you’ve found ways to combine the classic and the modern. Myself, I love wildflowers, manga, and Shakespeare!
I’m adding you to my absorbbyfascination tag!
Camille Now
March 11th, 2007 at 7:33 am
Thanks for the amazing story about New Zealand, John. Walking on tops of trees? I thought that could only happen in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and even then with plenty of wire support.
Funny you should mention the dawn chorus, as I was thinking of that subject for my next post…
March 11th, 2007 at 7:38 am
Thanks so much for your comment, Camille. Very glad you enjoyed your visit, and hope you come back again soon.
Fascinating site you’ve got too! Thanks for the link.
March 11th, 2007 at 8:49 pm
Roadway embankments have such potential! As a beekeeper, I’ve often wished that the highways departments could use clovers and lupins and other legumes for erosion control, all good nectar sources for my little flying friends as well as a very pretty sight — much nicer for a passing motorist to experience than artificial rip-rap rock embankments or patchy hydro-seeded grass and scrub!
March 11th, 2007 at 9:31 pm
Thanks, Domestika. Just outside my village they planted a mass of wildflowers on a long stretch of embankment, which was fabulous. Sadly the council cut them down before they’d seeded (d’uh) so they never grew back. Might take a while to catch on, but it I hope it will eventually.
By the way, I must say, I adore bees, as you might be able to tell from my honey post.
March 11th, 2007 at 9:59 pm
It was funny that I would mention the dawn chorus. But true to a certain maxim, “in the spirit of serendipity…”