Unusual ears in Schwabing: urban greens become a surprise garden!

Unusual ears in Schwabing: urban greens become a surprise garden!

in West-Schwabing something is struggling: Along the green strips, under the street trees and on the small grassols sprouts kneehohe, light green ears. These plants are mouse barley (Hordeum Murinum), a wild relative of the usual grain. However, the city of Munich has not concluded a new planting concept or corresponding contracts with brewery farmers to bring about this "flower subsidy", such as the evening newspaper reported.

The city in Schwabing-West has chosen a new approach since 2021: mowing work on the streets and sidewalks are only carried out twice a year. This creates a more flowering habitat for endangered bees and other insects. With 490 hectares, the area of ​​the street walking green strips is even larger than the English garden, which includes 374 hectares. In Schwabing, the mouse barley, which offers pollen, thrives above all.

The spread of the mouse barley

Gabriele Feneberg, landscape architect in the construction department, sees the increasing spread of the mouse barley calmly. She explains that this plant is a one -year way and is therefore not worrying. Nevertheless, there are concerns about invasive plants, such as the Japanese perennial knotle, which could displace domestic species. This topic is particularly relevant, since around 900 neobiota species are currently recorded in Germany, which corresponds to about 1% of the approximately 74,000 established species, as the Federal Research Institute for Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology determined.

The mouse barley spreads, among other things, through wind and by barbeting on their seeds, which can be stuck in the fur of animals. The food for pigeons could also have contributed to their spread. The first mowing of the year is expected in one to two weeks, so that the residents can soon no longer be amazed at the unusual ears.

meaning for biodiversity

Although the variety of plants in Schwabing offers an interesting picture, you should not forget that the situation also has challenges. According to a study, invasive plants are a serious topic in protecting domestic flora. If you want to take a closer look at the protection status of the species, you can find on the part of the Ecology page Further information. Regardless of the legal status, it is recommended to treat all types of the Red List as particularly protected.

climate change could also lead to the fact that as a result of milder winter, further neobiota species in Germany gain a foothold, which further changes the ecological conditions. The citizens of Munich can look forward to how the green areas develop in Schwabing and which plants will gain a foothold in the future.