What the action involves
This action’s aim is that there’s an established pollen and nectar flower mix which:
- is growing in blocks or strips
- produces areas of flowering plants from late spring and during the summer months
The purpose of this is to:
- provide food for beneficial pollinators such as bumble bees, solitary bees, butterflies and hoverflies
- encourage natural crop pest predators as part of an integrated pest management approach if located close to cropped areas
What you must do
Your Natural England adviser will assess your land. They’ll work with you to adapt and agree the activities you must do to achieve this action’s aim. All mandatory activities will be set out in your agreement document.
To get paid for this action, you must:
- establish by sowing in blocks or strips with an agreed flower seed mix, cutting regularly for the first year after sowing
- manage the plots by rotationally cutting or grazing an agreed area of the plot annually to deliver the action’s aims
You must not:
- cut or graze it with livestock in a way that means this action’s aim cannot reasonably be expected to be achieved
- use it for regular vehicular access, turning or storage (for example, storing bales or machinery)
- apply any fertilisers and manures
- apply pesticides – you may be able to use herbicides to spot-treat or weed-wipe for the control of injurious weeds, invasive non-native plant species, nettles or other plants if this has been agreed with your Natural England adviser
In the final year of this action’s duration, you must do this action until the agreement end date or this action’s end date, whichever is earlier.
When to do it
You must do this action each year of its duration.
It counts toward the 25% limit
This action has a 25% limit on the amount of land that can be entered into a CSHT agreement. The limit will apply to the area of land with limited area actions in CSHT and SFI agreements added together. For example, if you have 10% of land in an SFI limited area action, you can only have 15% of land in a CSHT limited area action.
Read section 3.4: ‘Actions with a limited area’ in the CSHT applicant’s guide for more information.
Evidence to keep
You must keep evidence to show what you have done to complete this action. If it’s not clear that you have done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) may ask for this evidence.
You must supply the evidence if they ask for it, including:
- field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices, including details of the seed mix used
- photographs
- records of stock grazing on the parcel (if you manage the plot with grazing livestock)
The same action appears in the other schemes under a different code. The work is broadly the same; the rate and the length of the commitment are not.
Where you can do it
You can do this action on eligible land that’s located below the moorland line.
Eligible land
You can do this action on land that’s:
- an eligible land type
- registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps
- declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover
Available area
Total or part of the available area in the land parcel.
Rotational or static
This action can be rotational or static. This means you can either:
- move the action every year
- keep it at the same location
Consents and permissions
To apply for this action, you’ll need:
- Scheduled Monument Consent from Historic England for any work on scheduled monuments
- consent from Natural England for any activity on land designated as a site of special scientific interest (SSSI)
You may need to:
- agree an implementation plan or feasibility study with your Natural England adviser
- get advice from your Natural England adviser if you have other historic or archaeological features on your agreement land
- get a wildlife licence from Natural England if your activities affect a protected species or their habitat
All historic and archaeological features (including scheduled monuments) are identified in your Historic Environment Farm Environment Record (HEFER).
If you’re a tenant, it’s your responsibility to check whether your tenancy agreement allows you to complete what’s required in the actions you choose. You may need your landlord’s consent.
Capital grants that support it
If you need to complete an implementation plan or a feasibility study before you apply, you can apply for capital grants plans funding.
You can also apply for capital items to help you achieve the action’s aims. Your Natural England adviser will discuss eligible capital items with you.
