PEOPLE are being urged to harvest native wildflower species from verges, churchyards and other spaces.

As part of the Meadow Links project, local charity the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT) is working closely with community groups to create species-rich meadows in public spaces across the dales.

Local seed provenance is key to the success of the project, which aims to create wildflower seed banks that can support any future meadow restoration nearby.

Locally sourced seeds are more likely to produce plants better adapted to the local climate and landscape and include important genetic characteristics which influence the time the plants come into leaf and flowers, working in synchronisation with the local wildlife it supports.

YDMT’s Meadow Links project officer Tanya St Pierre said the UK had lost over 97 per cent of its wildflower meadows since the Second World War and 60 per cent of England’s flowering plants are decreasing.

“Whilst we’re lucky to have some fantastic pockets of these meadows that still survive across the Yorkshire Dales, they are becoming rare and isolated,” she said.

“With help from local communities we’re hoping to boost our local seed bank, encourage ‘gene flow’ across the area, and ultimately create more healthy wildflower habitats.”

YDMT would like to work with other community groups to create more wildlife patches across the dales.

Anyone with a group of willing volunteers and an accessible public space about the size of a tennis court, is asked to contact Tanya St. Pierre on 01524-251002 or email; tanya.stpierre@ydmt.org for more information about how to get involved.