The community restoring one of Wales’ rarest habitats

Debs Luxon

When Jo Porter moved to Rhiw in 2018, before she even unpacked a box, she scattered some seeds in the neglected field attached to her house.

In doing this, she started a trend that would evolve into an 80-strong network of people growing their lawns, road verges, hay meadows, part of a golf club and even graveyards into species-rich grasslands across the Llŷn Peninsula, increasing both biodiversity and the area’s resilience to drought.

The 56-year-old ecologist said: “It started very organically through talking to neighbours.
“A lot of people have a house with a bit of land, and there’s a desire to do what they can for nature.
“I began to see how important these patches of land are, no matter how small – there’s so much fragmentation of habitat that every patch counts. They’re stepping stones for wildlife.”

In recruiting places like Mynytho village green and the edge of a rugby pitch to the Dolydd Llŷn (Llŷn Meadows) network, Jo is bringing the Llŷn’s grasslands back from the edge.

Wales has lost 91% of its species-rich grasslands due to development and agricultural intensification since WWII, but on the Llŷn, the figure is likely closer to 99%.

Their loss means fewer flowers for pollinators so less food for birds, fewer habitats for wildlife, and increased risk of drought and flooding through the loss of deep, moisture-retaining root structures.

Steve and Flick Kelly in Rhoshirwaun didn’t realise they owned one of Llŷn’s last untouched meadows until one evening in 2019 when Jo knocked on their door.
The following day, a farmer was scheduled to spray weedkiller on it.

Now their five-acre field has become not only an example to others, but a donor site sharing local seeds with depleted areas.

Steve, 72, a retired banker, previously kept a mown urban lawn: “I was shocked to learn about it, but after thinking about it, not surprised. Now we’re very proud of it.
“Jo rescued it; it would’ve been destroyed.”

The Kellys, like many people, didn’t realise the significance of unploughed wildflower meadows – undisturbed grasslands can hold more below-ground carbon than woodlands or agricultural fields.

Jo said: “People immediately think of planting trees, but not restoring grasslands.

“The rooting system in a meadow is incredible, with some species rooting down two metres.

“That gives a lot of resilience in the face of climate change or flooding.”

With the right treatment, grasslands support an incredible diversity of fungi, rare plants like orchids and rare birds like choughs, for which the Llŷn is home to a quarter of Wales’ population.

That diversity makes the couple’s meadow “noisy” with insects. In the last five years, there’s been a 55% drop in flying insects found on number plate counts in Wales, and a 78% loss UK-wide in the last 20 years.

The growing network includes Pwllheli Town Council, which recently saw the return of rare orchid species by changing their cutting practices, and now has a resident otter.

Linked up, these patches of land become crucial “corridors” for wildlife, connecting previously disconnected areas of the landscape.

The Dolydd Llŷn network attracts newcomers every year, like Mary Robinson of Rhyd-y-clafdy, who joined because she “longed for the flower-rich meadows of my father’s smallholding when I was growing up in the 60s” and realised mowing was a “waste of time, money and petrol”.

Jo advises joiners like Mary, and is now paid for her time by Gwynedd Council from Welsh government funds.

Mary is already seeing more plant species and a huge new abundance of grasshoppers.

Species-rich grasslands and traditional hay meadows aren’t just lawns that haven’t been mown; they are left to grow until the seeds drop in late summer, often cut for hay and grazed over the winter months.
Used on farms instead of fast-growing monocultures of rye or clover, the livestock also benefit.

Tenant farmer Carwyn Evans at Cwrt Farm worked with Jo to return some of his fields to species-rich meadows, finding the livestock were more robust and didn’t require as much medicinal wormers, saving him money.

The sheep and cattle farmer said: “I used to think hay meadows were a waste of time and space, as we just wanted to make as much silage as possible.

“Now I see how they fit into the bigger picture – every part of the cycle needs looking after because there’s a knock-on effect, for example, pollinators, which are important on the farm.

“Farming and nature need each other. Without one, you won’t have the other.”

He noticed the restored meadows stayed green as others yellowed during hot summers, adding: “The hay itself is better for feeding the stock in winter and doesn’t need wrapping in plastic. It isn’t as good for fattening stock as ryegrass, but has good nutritional value.”

Farms traditionally kept a ‘cae meddyg’ (medical field) for livestock to self-medicate.

Carwyn was incentivised to restore his meadows as part of a pilot project for the new Sustainable Farming Scheme, and can now also sell his meat as a higher grade, increasing its sale value.

On Gwynedd Council’s involvement, project manager Arwel Jones said it’s crucial the council sets an example for people and nature: “[A road verge] is something people see all the time – historically, verges were cut too early, so the flowers didn’t bloom or seed.

“We’re now trialling different management techniques to increase wider diversity on council-managed land, while encouraging the same practices in towns and villages.”

He described the work of Dolydd Llŷn as important “because the land people manage for nature becomes stepping stones that connect landscapes – if everyone does something, it has a collective positive effect.”

Jo says everyone can play their part – learn how via the Plantlife website