Attractive photographs of fields with colorful wildflowers seen in magazines and catalogs, combined with the misconception that meadow gardening is maintenance free, have probably contributed to its growing popularity. Meadow gardening is in its infancy in the Northeast. There is much to be learned about it, and there may be some ecological concerns related to it. Successful meadow gardening is dependent on understanding the nature of meadows and learning what is involved in creating one. It is helpful if the gardener has a basic understanding of plant succession, a natural process whereby one assemblage of plants is replaced by another until a climax situation is reached.
Climax situations are capable of sustaining themselves.
For example, in the Northeast, woodlands dominated by red oaks, black oaks, and white oaks constitute a climax condition. Next, it is necessary to understand what a meadow is and where one occurs. Natural grasslands are climax ecosystems maintained by environmental factors that restrict the growth of woody plants. For instance, alpine meadows occur at high elevations and are maintained by harsh climatic conditions. Coastal meadows are maintained by salt sprays, and desert meadows by low precipitation.