A FUNDRAISING appeal to secure the future of a rare wildflower meadow near Raglan has reached its target.

The Monmouthshire Meadows Group has raised the £96,000 needed to buy Kingcoed Meadows - two traditional flower-rich meadows at Kingcoed.

The charity group launched the appeal to buy the 12-acre site in March with the aim of ensuring the unique habitat is not lost to general farming.

The fields have been sympathetically managed by their current owners for 12 years. Among the plants that have colonised and spread are Spotted Orchids, Southern Marsh Orchids, Knapweed, Common Cat’s Ear, Rough Hawkbit, Tufted Vetch and Bird’s-foot Trefoil.

The abundance of wildflowers attracts many bees, butterflies and other insects as well as birds and small mammals.

The appeal was supported by TV wildlife presenter Iolo Williams, with donations from visitors during open days, supporters and several trusts including the Banister Trust, Waterloo Foundation, Gwent Wildlife Trust and the Alan Evans Memorial Trust.

The group reached its target when it was successful in applying for a Biffa Award for £45,000 towards the cost of buying the fields and display material to encourage the use of the fields by the public. The Biffa Award is a fund that helps to build communities and transform lives through awarding grants to community and environmental projects across the UK.

Monmouthshire Meadows Group was founded 13 years ago to conserve and restore flower-rich grasslands in Monmouthshire and is run by a voluntary committee that includes experts in botany and ecology.

Dr Stephanie Tyler, the charity’s chairwoman said: “This very large award means that the Trustees of the Meadows Group can now complete the purchase of the fields.”

“We would like to sincerely thank Biffa Award for their large grant as well as all the other Trusts and individuals who have kindly donated to the cause and made the purchase possible.”

“The Kingcoed Meadows are part of Monmouthshire’s environmental heritage and we hope that people will come along on our open days to enjoy this beautiful, natural habitat.”

The meadows will be open to the public on National Meadows Day on July 2.