Glorious Grasslands

Wonderful wildflower meadow

Andy Bartlett

NATURAL SOLUTIONS TO THE CLIMATE CRISIS

Glorious grasslands

What are grasslands?

Grasslands are an ancient habitat, very much ingrained within our culture. Following the last Ice Age, around 12,000 years ago, mossy vegetation and weedy plants colonised bare ground, which was left behind when the glaciers melted. Gradually these areas developed into communities of grasses, sedges and herbs as more plants found a home - resulting in the wonderful flower-rich meadows we find (all too sparingly) today.

Watch the video below to see what grassland restoration work we are doing in Staffordshire to help in the fight against climate change.

Why are grasslands important?

Unimproved' grasslands are extremely important for wildlife. 'Unimproved' means grassland that hasn't been reseeded, fertilised or drained. Whilst considered to be on less 'productive' soil they support a huge range of species, including green-winged orchid, snake's head fritillary, bird's-foot trefoil and pasque flower. The sheer abundance of wildflowers in these habitats can be spellbinding!

Thanks to this amazing array of flowers, a wide range of insects, from bumblebees to butterflies, feast in these areas, and they in turn are prey for birds and mammals. Birds of prey, such as barn owls, can be found hunting along margins, and adders slither through the grass, 

Meadow

Katrina Martin / 2020VISION

A natural solution to the climate crisis

UK grasslands store two billion tonnes of carbon in their soils, but this is vulnerable to disturbance. Between 1990-2006, conversion from grassland to arable production (such as ploughing to grow crops) released 14 million tonnes of CO2. Species-rich grasslands are huge carbon stores and when managed carefully, e.g. through herb-rich leys and sensitive grazing, they lock in carbon and boost biodiversity. 

Grasslands have a huge potential for locking up carbon, not only due to the plants we can see on the surface, but also due to the relationships between the plants, fungi, bacteria and many other species which help enrich the soil with carbon.

Thorswood - meadow flowers

Threats and pressures

Most of today’s grassland is farmland or rough upland grazing, with only a tiny proportion of ‘unimproved’ grassland remaining. In England there are around 4.5 million hectares of grassland, of which just 100,000ha are unimproved.

Degradation began in the 19th Century, when guano (droppings from seabird colonies) was used as fertiliser. This was later replaced by artificial alternatives. During the 1940s and 1950s chemical fertilisers, herbicides and new grass varieties were used to increase yields. At the same time government incentives (to help national self-sufficiency) encouraged farmers to plough up grasslands. During the 20th Century, 90% of lowland grasslands were lost.

In the uplands, the story was different, but the decline in grassland was just as dramatic. Here, overgrazing led to the conversion of moorland and blanket bog to less wildlife-rich upland acid grassland and rush pasture. Unimproved, species-rich grassland is still being lost (although the rate of loss has slowed) and grassland on protected sites is deteriorating. The numbers of butterflies and breeding birds, such as curlew and lapwing, continue to decline.

Between 1990-2006, arable conversion of grasslands released 14 million tonnes of CO2.
Small Tortoiseshell butterfly

Small Tortoiseshell ©Scott Petrek

Conservation and recovery

Protecting and restoring the UK's grasslands could play an important role in achieving net zero carbon emissions.  It must be recognised that there is some debate over the role of grazing in supporting grasslands’ ability to capture carbon, since grazing animals are responsible for carbon emissions and ruminants, particularly cattle, release methane – a greenhouse gas with more heating potential than CO2. However, well-managed and low levels of grazing is recognised as increasing soil carbon and biodiversity, while overgrazing can result in the release of carbon from the soil.

Grassland restoration

Ben Wiles 

What grassland restoration are we doing in Staffordshire?

The Burton Washlands grassland currently supports only a few different plant species. The Trust has been using methods such as green hay strewing to help enrich the grassland onsite by adding in wild flower seed. Restoring grassland on the site will help combat climate change and also help mitigate against the impacts of flooding as well as increase biodiversity for a range of species across the site. Pollinators will particularly benefit from the nectar rich grassland.

Let nature help

Find out more about the other Nature based solutions work the Trust is doing in Staffordshire and how it is helping to fight climate change 

Learn more