Closed Churchyard Wildflower Project

In May 2021 the Parish Council took over the management of all the green spaces in the area that had previously been managed by Bradford Council.  It was decided that this area was ideal for development as a wildflower area.  When developing a management plan we acknowledge advice from “Caring for God’s Acres”.  The objective was to first of all identify the species that were already established and to select areas where the selective planting of native wildflowers should take place.

An appeal for volunteers resulted in many local people coming forward to assist in cutting back undergrowth and raking dead grass so that existing wildflowers had a chance to flourish. In addition to the existing wildflowers more woodland species were planted and work undertaken to manage the tussocky grass.

Grass management involves regular mowing in large open areas and manually digging out the tussocks in other areas where it is difficult to mow.  In the process of this work graves have been revealed that have been hidden for many years.  In some areas of the cemetery the grass has been left to grow to benefit wildlife and is only mown once a year, with strimming at the edges of the paths.

The wildflowers listed below are all to be found in the cemetery and this will be extended with more species as the project develops.  In addition to wildflowers the churchyard contains many mature trees.