Roadside flowers hit hard by council cuts

Roadside verge near Wareham, Dorset: the wildflowers are part of a trial initiative by Dorset county council to provide an attractive habitat for butterflies and insects, while cutting the costs of roadside mowing. Photograph: Eva Worobiec/Alamy

As Patrick Barkham says (Postcards from the hedge, 2 August) austerity is responsible for wild roadsides. But this is only partly so. Plantlife has for years campaigned for roadside verges to be left uncut until flowers have dropped their seeds, which can be as late as August or September. One cut can be ideal, with the proviso that visibility is maintained for road users. Dorset county council is following such guidelines and is experimenting with stripping topsoil to reduce fertility and introducing yellow rattle to inhibit vigorous grass growth. It is hoped that other local authorities will introduce such measures into their roadside maintenance schedules to help wildflowers that have been pushed from farmlands to the margins.
Paul Walker
Buxton, Derbyshire

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