Ecology & Environment

Just 1.5 miles from Salford Quays, Weaste Cemetery is a tranquil green oasis in an urban landscape. Within its 39 acres, a variety of beautiful trees and wild flowers create a haven for wildlife.

The grassland in the cemetery would once have reflected the  traditionally managed meadows surrounding it. At Weaste the surrounding countryside has long since disappeared, but the grassland surviving in the cemetery today is an important relict meadow.

Because the majority of the grassland is unimproved by chemicals and has been managed as a grassland for at least as long as it's been a cemetery (since 1857), a wider range of flowers can survive. Throughout the year you can already see: daisy, dandelion, creeping and meadow buttercup, lady's smock (also known as cuckoo flower), bluebell, self-heal, thyme-leaved speedwell. Can you identify any others?

There is also a wide range of trees on the site. All these are important for a variety of birds, insects and even bats as important food sources, shelter and breeding grounds.

Weaste is not only important for the plants and animals that are able to survive here. The cemetery is one of the few remaining areas of greenspace left providing a stepping-stone for wildlife across built-up areas.

From time to time the Friends of Salford Cemeteries host Conservation Days at the cemetery. For more information please see our events page.