News

Recently our UK weather patterns appear to have been changing.  Last years winter was a case in point with the arrival of snow in early November and summers for the past two years have been hot and dry through April to June.  All this is great for wildflower meadows but also means that the flowering season is prolific through the early, dry part of the season before it has rained later in the summer.  The wild flowers are long and lush at this time and going to seed but everything can fall over with the weight of the rain this prevent the later flowering plants such as Betony, Lady’s Bedstraw, Yarrow and Wild Carrot from being able to flower. So what can be done?
Previously we have asserted that one of the benefits of a wildflower meadow is the low maintenance regime, and that hasn’t changed.  However, as with all things plant related, an open mind and the ability to be flexible is all important.  While the thatch of wild flowers and grasses provides perfect cover and habitat for slow worms, field mice and voles, vital food for Barn, Tawney & Little Owls, and with seeds providing food for various…

The sun shone, the wildflowers were glorious and the sound of children having fun filled the air.  Where was James yesterday?  He was at Peppa Pig World, Paultons Park, standing in a meadow.  But not just any meadow, this one is on the roof of this new themed attraction, that houses an indoor play zone and Peppa Pig shop.
But what was James doing there?  Being interviewed by Laura Ansell of BBC Radio Solent for the Alan Dyke Show no less.
The show is being broadcasted on Friday 3rd June @ 11:40, when you can listen as James describes the logistics of such a large project and the benefits of a wildflower roof in such a beautiful area on the edge of the New Forest.
The popularity of wildflower roof turf is growing in this country especially in the face increasing pressure to establish green corridors for wildlife.
You can also hear James explaining how the biodiverse nature of wildflower roof turf is overtaking the previous popularity of Sedum roofs.
Here are a few photo’s of the Paultons Park roof for you to enjoy.

Last week James Hewetson-Brown (Managing Partner of Coronet Turf)  had the thrilling experience of being a passenger in a Cessna airplane out of Popham Airfield, Hampshire.  The purpose of this flight was to take up to date aerial  photo’s of our wildflower turf production area at Ashe Warren Farm for our website. Just watch the photo’s roll over to see the full 360° view.
It was a fine day, without a cloud in the sky – just perfect. The results are quite stunning as I am sure you will agree and clearly show the wildflower turf beds, lake and production sheds surrounded by beautiful farm land.

With much in the news at the moment about Councils cutting costs it is hardly a surprise to read in Horticulture Week magazine this week, that one council is beginning to transfer maintenance of public spaces in villages and towns to  local town and parish councils.  HOw long will it be before others follow suit?
So what will they do with these village greens, verges and open spaces at their disposal?  One solution could be to create wildflower meadows.
How any village greens have always been trimmed within an inch of their lives that couldn’t benefit from a little natural “wildness” to encourage bees, butterflies and moths.  Everyone likes to see a village green, with a pond, seating area etc. at the centre of the community.  But structured areas are not really in keeping with the countryside, so why not transform just a bit of the area into a wildflower meadow?
Areas that could benefit from such a transformation would be pond edges, an area in the corner of a green that gets full sun, or even an area of dappled shade that would benefit from being brightened up with wildflowers.  Plus any of those scrubby areas that…

In the Autumn of last year not long before the early snows hit us, we were happy to supply 20m² of our wildflower roof turf to Jim and Susan Nixon who were building a new house in Winchester.  At the bottom of their garden they had built a covered BBQ area with adjacent storage.  This roof they planned to cover with stunning wildflower roof turf.
Jim was kind enough this week to send us a lovely collection of photo’s of their roof project as it progressed as well as the finished result.  The other great thing about their project is the use of a solar panel which charges a battery thus providing light as the evenings draw in.  The beauty is that now the wildflowers have grown up you can no longer see the solar panel.  Ingenious.
It does look simply stunning and what a lovely place to enjoy a glass of wine of a summer’s evening.
We are sure you will find this as inspirational as we have.

It’s that time of year again and Chelsea 2012 has been a stunner.  We are proud to say that some of the designers again chose our turf for their beautiful gardens. Here are a few for you to see:
Marney Hall – Skyshades Powered by Light won a Silver Award
Kati Crome –  A Postcard from Wales – Artisan Garden category – won a Gold Medal
Penny Riley – NFU/Waitrose – Championing British Stand in the main pavilion won a Gold Medal – this is Penny’s 15th Gold for the NFU
The Best Urban Garden, Winds of Change designed by Jamie Dunstan sported a beautiful green roof sourced from our own stock of Wildflower Roof Turf.
Congratulations to all who won awards, we are really proud to see our turf in these beautiful garden designs.  Lots of food for thought for budding designers and gardeners around the country.

It’s a bold statement but true none the less, wildflower meadows developed using our wildflower turf do get better and better.  For example “Historic Garden – Hampshire” a large wildflower meadow (2,500m² CT Flora) adjacent to a magnificent area of lawn (1,200m² CT P1) has continued to improve year on year since it was completed in Spring 2009.
This week James Hewetson-Brown (Managing Partner at Coronet Turf) was invited by Phil Wells – Estate Manager, to come and photograph the gardens “as they will be at their peak”.  He was not wrong.
The lawns are glorious, demonstrating the advantages of using top quality lawn turf.  but its the wildflower meadow that steals the show and has improved beyond all expectations.
This year is proving to be a very good year for wildflowers.  The early cold winter and dry spring have worked their magic on seeds that had remained dormant, waiting for the right conditions, with the end results being both dramatic and beneficial to wildlife.
Have a look at the photos below. We’re sure you will agree it is all quite stunning.  You will be able to see more photos in our Gallery on our website.  What’s more, don’t forget to read the…

It’s always a big moment when our wildflower turf, specifically chosen by a garden designer, gets shipped out for the RHS Chelsea Flower show.  This year is no exception, especially as it is the 50th Anniversary of this prestigious RHS show.
Today BBS Roofing came to collect 3 rolls of our Wildflower Roof Turf.  The turf was looking especially beautiful, with Red and White Campions, Yellow Rattle, Birdsfoot Trefoil and Common Vetch flowering in the May sunshine.
We were so impressed with the image it made as it was loaded onto the pick-up that James decided he had to take some photos for posterity.  I think you’ll agree it looks pretty stunning.
We wont tell you which show garden this is for yet, we’re going to wait until the show next week and surprise you.  So watch this space.

We were full of anticipation the other day when the Hawk Conservancy arrived to check out the nest boxes on the farm.  You will remember last year we were able to proudly announce, like all surrogate parents, the successful hatching of a Barn Owl and what a bruiser he was too.
Now this year, we waited with bated breath as Matt Stevens, Conservation Officer at the Hawk Conservancy, Andover went off the inspect the nest boxes.  Imagine our surprise when he came back with more good news than we were expecting.
Not only are there two chicks already hatched and doing really well in the Barn Owl box, but there are four more eggs all ready to hatch.  A bumper year.
Background: Barn Owl (Tyto alba) can lay between 4-7 eggs per clutch at 2-3 day intervals.  Clutch size and breeding success depends very much on the availability of their main prey species (short-tailed voles and other field rodents).  The fact that there are likely to be 6 offspring means, so says Matt, that this is a good year.
However, this was not the only piece of good news that Matt conveyed. On the ledge in front of the…

Even though it was a cold and blustery late afternoon for our first group, the Wildflower Talk and Tour around the production site on the farm was a great success.  Starting with a talk given by James which lasted around half an hour, the group went out to brave the elements and see the turf growing at every stage of production.
Lisa Cox of Lisa Cox Garden Designs arranged the first group of garden designers to visit the farm who came from Esher, known as the SGD Cluster Group. Her blog relates how they learned all about wildflower turf and how beautiful and biodiverse it is.
We have a couple of nice photo’s showing James addressing the group on the tour.
James said, ” The tour was a great success despite the cold wind and there was quite a lot of interaction with lots of questions as we went round.  This was the first of a new initiative, and we are now  looking forward to doing more of these as the season progresses”.