Resources

The Partnership has produced a number of documents and publications, and are starting to compile relevant documents that have been published by others. These are broken down here by subject, and are also linked throughout the website in the relevant sections.

Research Documents

• Meadows and more: a botanical journal of five days on the Uists, Benbecula and Eriskay
• The natural capital of floodplains:management, protection and restoration to deliver greater benefitsV2
• Ecohydrological Guidelines for Lowland Wetland Plant Communities
• The Water Regime Requirements and the response to Hydrological Change of Grassland Plant Communities
• Impact of summer flooding on floodplain biopersity via nutrient deposition (NERC urgency report)
• The conservation of floodplain meadows in Great Britain: an overview
• A review of the ecology, hydrology and nutrient dynamics of floodplain meadows in England (2002)
• Water Regime Requirements of the Native Flora with particular reference to ESA's
• Response of grassland plant communities to altered hydrological management (BD1321)
• Appendices
• JP021 edition 1 -  A review of the NVC for the Calthion group of plant communities
• Restoration sucess of Britsh floodplain meadows. Paper in Aspects of Applied Biology
• Drivers of species richness and compositional change in Scottish coastal vegetation. Pakeman et al, 2017
• Restoration of a floodplain meadow in Wiltshire, UK through application of green hay and conversion from pasture to meadow management. C. Hosie, E. Jones, E.C. Rothero & H. Wallace / Conservation Evidence (2019) 16, 12-16 12 ISSN 1758-2067 
• Natural capital, ecosystem services and restoration potential of semi-natural habitats in Welsh floodplains. Natural Resources Wales Evidence Report No. 265.
• Having a  break: Prolonged dormancy observed in a rare species, Fritillaria meleagris. Tatarenko I.V. Environment and Human: Ecological Studies. 2019. Vol. 9. No. 3. Рр. 302–324. DOI: 10.31862/2500-2961-2019-9-3-302-324
• Protecting small populations of rare species. Case study on Dactylorhiza viridis (Orchidaceae) in Fancott Woods and Meadows SSSI, Befordshire, UK.
• The Floodplain Meadows Partnership Meadows Database. A summary.

Floodplain Meadows Partnership Brochures and Articles

• Introduction to the Floodplain Meadows Partnership 
• Fritillary leaflet.
• Non-chemical control of marsh ragwort.
• When to cut a meadow
• What to do about hay cutting in a wet summer
• How plants respond to water regime changes, and the science behind our understanding of this relationship.
• Floodplain Meadows - Beauty and Utility. A technical handbook.
• Soil carbon in UK grasslands. A brief summary 2018.

Floodplain Meadows Partnership Protocols

• Botanical Monitoring Protocol
• Hydrological Monitoring protocol
• How to make your own buzzing stick
• Protocol for taking a hay sample for nutrient analysis

Other resources from around the web

• Living With Environmental Change (LWEC document)- Improving urban grassland for people and wildlife
• Is the rye-grass always greener? An evidence review of the nutritional, medicinal and production value of species-rich grassland. Shellswell, C.H. (2017) Plantlife.

Natural England Technical Information Notes (TIN's)

• TIN035 Soil sampling for habitat recreation and restoration
• TIN036 Soil and agri-environment schemes: interpretation of soil analysis
• TIN037 Soil texture
• TIN038 Seed sources for grassland restoration and re-creation in Environmental Stewardship
• TIN060 The use of yellow rattle to facilitate grassland persification
• TIN061 Sward enhancement: selection of suitable sites
• TIN062 Sward enhancement: choice of methods
• TIN063 Sward enhancement: persifying grassland by spreading species-rich green
• TIN064 Sward enhancement: persifying grassland by oversowing and slot seeding
• TIN065 Sward enhancement: persifying grassland using pot-grown wildflowers or seedling plugs
• TIN067 Arable reversion to species-rich grassland: establishing a sown sward
• TIN068 Arable reversion to species-rich grassland: early management of the new sward

Historical documents

• A history of Hemingford Grey Meadow by Bridget Smith
• Oxford Meads: A long term study by Alison McDonald
• Wombwell Ings: A study by John Rodwell
• Portholme Meadow Brampton Parish History and Natural History by Pat Doody
• Floodplain meadows in Henry V

Useful keys

• Key for soil texturing by hand
• Plant species list
• Plant table
• plant grid

Past Activities:

Floodplain Meadows Partnership Conference "Floodplain meadows for the future" May 2017

/sites/www.floodplainmeadows.org.uk/files/Conference%202017%20short%20programme.pdf

The conference was a huge success! Here is a list of presentations which have been made available as pdf files by kind permission of the authors:

• Long-term vegetation dynamics of two floodplain grasslands in the Netherlands Chris Smit
• The floodplain meadows with great burnet (Sanguisorba officinalis): a look across geographical gradient- Tatyana Parinova
• Tatyana Parinova transcript
• Floodplain meadow restoration on the northern Upper Rhine- measures and monitoring- Matthias Harnisch
• FMP restoration project- Irina Tatarenko
• FMP ambassadors Ken Pomfret and Debbie Lewis
• Looking to the future- results based agri-environment schemes in England- Annabelle LePage
• Nature's ups and downs in a changing Europe- John Rodwell 

Events 2016

UK Grasslands Forum 2016

This year, we helped to host the UK Grasslands Forum, along with FAI Farms and Dr Alison McDonald. The Grasslands Forum meets roughly annually with a 2 day workshop every 18 months or so and a day meeting in between times. It is a forum of individuals interested in UK Grasslands and largely took over where the Lowland grasslands Habitat Action Plan finished. The 2016 meeting was held at Wytham, the Oxford University Field Station and focussed on grassland restoration. Delegates were taken around Pixey and Yarnton Meads, both SSSI’s and SACs designated for their lowland meadow plant communities. These meadows are managed by FAI Farms. Other visits were held to several floodplain meadow restoration fields, also being undertaken by FAI Farms.

There were a selection of talks each day, with a focus on grassland restoration, and these are available to view below.

• A tale of two cities - Richard Scott, Landlife
• Anthills in grassland restoration - Tim King
• Beauty and Utility - restoration of floodplain meadows - Emma Rothero
• Recreating MG4 at Somerford Mead - Alison McDonald
• Red List of European Habitats and Restorability - John Rodwell UKGF 2016 Oxford
• Restoration of species-rich grassland in agri-environment schemes 1987-2016 - Steve Peel
• The fate of semi-natural grassland in England - Lucy Ridding
• Three Hagges Wood meadow An ecosystem creation project - Linden Hawthorne
• Eyes on the prize: will our grassland restoration targets deliver the desired environmental benefits? Clare Pinches

If you would like to find out more about the UK Grassland Forum, or join the mailing list, please let us know.

Conference 2014

See our facebook page for some photos from the event and Mikes website http://www.amanita-photolibrary.co.uk/photo_library/HTML_conference/index.htm.

Information provided as part of the conference pack

• Final programme, abstracts and biographies
• A revision of the Alopecurus pratensis-Sanguisorba officinalis (MG4) grassland community of the NVC brochure

          Posters

• Chimney Meadows
• Control of Fillipendula ulmaria in the Shannon Callows Ireland
• Friends of Rawcliffe Meadows
• Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows
• A revision of the Alopecurus pratensis-Sanguisorba officinalis (MG4) grassland community of the NVC
• Wheldrake Ings
• The Calthion: a re-classification of the wetter floodplain meadow plant communities and their distribution in England and Wales
• Flight of the Fritillary
• Kingsthorpe LNR
• What impact does stakeholder assessment have on the management of floodplain meadow grasslands?

Presentations

The following presentations have been made available as pdf files by kind permission of the authors.

• Ecosystem services in grasslands: evidence, trade-offs and restoration. James Bullock
• "Beauty and utility" in floodplain meadows: what price both? John Rodwell
• Assessing ecosystem services in the Nene Valley. Jim Rouquette
• Friends of Mottey Meadows. Mel Brown and Wes Weate
• Engaging the community in the conservation of a high profile site: Anita Barratt.
• Portholme Meadow SSSI and SAC, a 333 yedar legacy. J Patrick Doody
• Chimney Meadows: restoration and management. Lisa Lane
• Inspiring meadows in Northamptonshire. Matt Johnson and Robin Field
• Protecting flooded meadows in Estonia - examples from Alam-Pedja Nature Reserve. Jaak-Albert Metsoja

David Gowing Inaugural lecture (2011)

Professor David Gowing (The Floodplain Meadows Partnership Director) presented his inaugural lecture on 20th September 2011, entitled 'Floodplain Meadows: diversity, function and heritage'. This lecture is available to view if you follow this link http://stadium.open.ac.uk/stadia/preview.php?whichevent=1737&s=1

Photo credit: Mike Dodd

Floodplain Meadows Conference 2010

Presentations

• David Gowing Hydrology and vegetation of floodplain meadows in the UK
• Caitriona Maher Irish flood meadows, flooding, farming, flowers and flies
• Norbert Hoelzel Nutrient issues and recruitment limitation in flood meadows
• Alison McDonald Lowland meadows management and history
• Kerry Lock A restoration case study on the River Thames Oxfordshire UK
• Arnaud Duranel A restoration case study on the River Ray Oxfordshire UK
• Matthias Harnisch Restoration of floodplain meadows along the northern Upper Rhine some practical aspects
• Jen Heathcote Floodplain Meadows and the Historic Environment