Only one field in 500 in England is being managed in the best way for the UK’s wildflower heritage to survive, according to enviro-charity Plantlife. And its also argues that farm-stewardship schemes aren’t working well enough.
Plantlife's landscape conservation manager Andy Byfield argued that the low level of uptake of the best management options means the scheme is wasting money on options which are inneffective.
"The majority of farmers applying to the scheme are choosing the most basic management options available, such as hedgerow and ditch management,” he claimed.
Byfield said that farmers needed more one-to-one guidance on the best methods to encourage wild flowers to flourish and more funds should be made available for those who took positive action.
"We believe that putting more resources into one-to-one advice for farmers in these most important areas will achieve the best results for biodiversity," he said.
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