Like most meadows, the best time to see Radway Meadows at its best is from Spring through to late Summer.  The current grazing by sheep has left the grass sward quite short, so during 2008 we plan to leave the meadows to flower, before re-stocking with cattle later on.

Early in spring there will be the opposite-leaved golden saxifrage flowering in the hedge bottoms.  It is a tiny plant that only makes an impact through its large clumps.  Later in the year plants to look out for include:
Pignut, with a closely associated insect, the day-flying moth known as the chimney sweeper because of its colouring;
Hay rattle, a plant that is half-parasitic on grass roots.  It has a yellow flower in summer, drying to a browner seed head, with the seeds loose inside (hence the hay rattle name!).

There's lots of other wildflowers too, including ragged robin, marsh bedstraw and marsh St John's wort in the damper areas, many hedgerow species and of course meadowland flowers and grasses.  We hope to update our species list during 2007, so please send any records to us.