Adapted extracts from a letter to the Association of Nature Reserve Burial Grounds from Ken West, the director of Bereavement Services in Carlisle - who also runs the woodland burial ground there (which was the first in the UK to be established).
Over the past few years, I have come to understand some of the issues behind local provenance of seed, and these have recently been put into our Grounds Maintenance Specification. For instance, we will no longer use wild flower seed from any external source. This is because much of it seems to be imported, and it is also difficult to confirm provenance. The same applies to trees, and I will no longer trust most nurseries or grounds contractors. They all treat the issue of provenance very casually, and see it as slightly weird when you raise the subject. They always give verbal assurance about provenance, but never back it up with anything meaningful.
Currently, a local farmer, who also has a woodland grave reserved, grows our oak trees from acorns from an old tree on his grounds. I feel very content with this arrangement. If we need any wild flower seed, we will collect it from our own conservation areas.
I have pondered over bulbs such as bluebell. Bulbs and corms, particularly cyclamin, have been collected in the wild. One can understand the economic need to do this, in the third world. This can hardly apply to the native bluebell, which only grows in Britain and to a lesser degree, in Ireland. To collect in the wild is expensive and difficult and the damage would be obvious to local people.
For our Carlisle site, we buy our bulbs from a reputable Dutch firm. As they obviously grow their tulips, daffodils and other bulbs in bona fide bulb fields, I see no reason to doubt their assurance that they do not collect from the wild. In truth, I believe that the costs of production are less than the cost of collection from existing woodland, at least in Europe. I think we will continue to use them until more positive evidence comes to light.
I am planning to try to collect some native bluebell seed, to see if it will grow in our woodland. This is because our cemeteries have large areas of Spanish Bluebell, which we do not particularly want spreading to the Woodland graves. These are already crossing with the native bluebell, and it will be difficult to maintain a pure strain whatever we do. The whole issue of local provenance is fraught with problems, and even the experts seem divided over the issue.
I think that the Association of Nature Reserve Burial Grounds could categorically state that only local wild flower seed, and trees and shrubs grown from local seed or plant material should be used. Propagating these items locally is difficult, but can be achieved. Finding a supplier of native bluebell from local seed collection would be very difficult. Perhaps a warning about using native bulbs could be drafted, with a direction that they should only be obtained from reputable firms. A further note could suggest that the Association will monitor this for the next few years.
I make these points because the bulb issue is much wider than just the native bluebell. Many sites will be planting snowdrops, aconites and 'native' daffodil. To deny them this would be seen as rather restrictive, even though reference to these bulbs as 'native' is very dubious. As they are planted everywhere, and are established throughout the country in the wild, a restriction on planting would seem ridiculous. Nonetheless, an opinion on bulbs in general does appear necessary, and could be developed as we learn more.
Ken West, Carlisle Woodland Burial Ground, Cemetery Office, Richardson Street, Carlisle CA2 6AL (tel 01228 625310; fax 01228 625313).
The Association of Nature Reserve Burial Grounds does not at present have the resources to police its criteria, so in order to decentralise policy-making as far as possible, burial grounds wishing to become full members are asked to provide a letter from their local wildlife organisation saying that it is happy with the burial ground's plans, whether this be concerning their use of bluebells or any other factor.
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