A WEST Devon borough councillor has launched a petition calling for hedgerows and verges to be left uncut to allow wildflowers and creatures to flourish.

Cllr Lynn Daniel, who represents the South Tawton ward as a Green party member, has almost 1,300 signatures so far for a petition lodged with not-for-profit campaigning group 38 Degrees.

She wants councils to leave hedgerows and verges well alone in midsummer, saying wildlife has benefited from the Covid-19 enforced break in strimming by officialdom.

Her petition ‘Wildflower verges and hedges for Devon’ calls on Devon County Council as the highways authority to ‘issue strong environmental guidance for all town and parishes and landowners to stop the constant mowing, strimming, flailing and pesticide spraying’.

‘In Devon we have a myriad of verges and hedges that provide homes and food for hundreds of insects as well as many varieties of wildflowers and animals,’ she said. ‘How wonderful the verges have looked this spring with the suspension of the regular cutting and strimming regimes around the county following the coronavirus restrictions.

‘As we recover we can remember and appreciate living in a beautiful county and reflect on the consolation being in nature can bring. It is so sad to see acres of dead grass following the council mower where once stood foxgloves, buttercups, bluebells and cow parsley with butterflies and bees flying around them.

‘We are missing a really easy way to protect and enhance our biodiversity, we need to just stop this way of managing verges and hedges.’

While Devon County Council, as the highways authority, cuts back growth of hedgerows and verges to ensure visiblity for motorists, the other tiers of councils also cut back growth in their areas.

However Cllr Daniel believes too heavy a hand being wielded by councils. ‘It is not “tidy” to lay waste to a natural habitat unnecessarily, it is destruction,’ she said. ‘We know that our natural environment is under threat from human activity, this is an action you can take to mitigate and improve Devon’s biome.’

She suggested confining cutting to twice a year, once early and once late, would also save councils money.

‘If you leave it, the wildflowers will come, some reseeding may be required and removal of the tough plants that are the only survivors of the strimming regime, if necessary to allow more tender plants to emerge,’ she said.

‘Once this is done a light hand only is required. Wildflower seeds can remain in the soil for years waiting for the right time, let that time be now.’