Cotswold Seeds, based in Moreton-in-Marsh, supplies over 8,000 farmers across the UK and reports an increasing number of inquiries from farmers who are planning to use areas of their land for renewable energy, as well as from contractors and developers looking for ways to repair the ground once the multiple PV modules have been installed.
“We have learned that contractors require a grass sward to be low in height and slow growing to keep grassland maintenance to a minimum and we have also received enquiries concerning the best way to provide a high quality grazing forage mixture for landowners looking to gain grazing revenue by running sheep over the land and in-be tween the panels,” said technical advisor Sam Lane.
In response to these requirements, Cotswold Seeds has developed several seed mixtures tailored to be used alongside solar park projects, designed to be both low maintenance and long term. These include Long Term Grazing Mixture and Permanent Grassland Low Maintenance Mixture.