On Tuesday the 1st of October, our ecology team collaborated with environmental science students from the University of Galway (UG) for a seed collection day. This was part of a project that started in 2023, to create a species-rich native grassland as part of the landscaping of a new student accommodation complex on the University of Galway campus. The project was conceived in the planning stage of the development with Landscape Architects, Mitchell and Associates with the vision of connecting the new development to the natural environment in the surrounding area. The plan was sanctioned by UG’s buildings department and the design and undertaking of the project has involved close collaboration with all parties including the construction team, MKO and UG.
During construction, soil from the site was saved and spread thinly on a layer of limestone chippings to replicate the thin soils typical of our native calcareous grasslands. In 2023, students from UG and staff from MKO carried out the initial seed collection day, in which native wildflower seeds were collected from nearby calcareous grassland and were spread in the designated plots within the accommodation complex. This continued with this year’s additional seed collection day which aimed to build up the seed bank in the areas of created habitat. This experiment aims to develop a methodology that can be implemented in future construction projects, resulting in the creation of valuable habitats and is also a great example of collaboration between the project design team, the UG Buildings Department, JJ Rhatigan Buildings Contractors, academic staff and students.
