Wednesday, August 17, 2011

The Most Beautiful and Significant Meadows in the World


Definition, type of meadows and remarkable examples of meadows

What is a meadow? Well, a meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants. It may be naturally occurring or artificially cleared. It may be cut for hay or grazed by livestock such as cattle, goat and sheep. There are different types of meadows such as coastal meadow, flood meadow, mottey meadow and wet meadow.

Some meadows from around the world can offer scenic views and can be popular attractions too. Here are some examples of the most captivating meadows in the world.



The meadow on the above photo is located near Grindelwald in the Swiss Alps



Grindelwald is a town in Bern, Switzerland. It is located at 1,034 meters above sea level in the Bernese Alps.

Coastal Meadow


A type of meadow is coastal meadow. The coastal meadow on the above photo is located in the Atlantic Ocean in the East Coast of Brazil. It is specifically located in Genipabu in Rio Grande do Norte.



This coastal meadow is located in the Indian Ocean in the coasts of the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal, India.

Flood Meadow


The flood meadow on the above photo is located near Hohenau an der March in Austria. A flood-meadow is an area of grassland or pasture beside a river, subject to seasonal flooding.



The flood meadow on the above picture is the Christ Church Meadow. This famous flood meadow is a popular walking and picnic spot in Oxford, England, UK It is bounded by the River Thames, the River Cherwell and Christ Church. The lower sections of the meadow are grazed by cattle, while the upper sections have sports fields.

Mottey Meadow


Another type of meadow is mottey meadow. The above photo is the Mottey Meadows National Reserve. It consists of a series of alluvial flood meadows near the village of Wheaton Aston in Staffordshire. The meadows have been managed for hay making for many centuries. They support over 240 species of flowering plants, including the rare Snake’s-head Fritillary.



Prairies can be considered meadows too or at least portion of it. The beautiful prairie on the above photo is in Effigy Mounds National Monument in Iowa, United States

Wet Meadow


A wet meadow is a semi-wetland meadow which is saturated with water throughout much of the year. A wet meadow does not have standing water present except for brief to moderate periods during the growing season unlike swamp or marsh. Instead, the ground in a wet meadow is typically damp and squishy, like a well-soaked sponge.

See also

1 comment:

Key Hunters said...

I genuinely needed a list of beautiful meadows for unimportant and long to explain reasons and you saved my day. You, sir, are my hero.