Verge cutting halted to save orchids from the chop
It is hoped the move would see more orchids grow in the area in the future
- Published
A council has paused verge cutting along a road after two species of orchids were found growing.
Dorset Council said its greenspace team was working along the A354 Easton Lane on Portland when they came across bee and pyramidal orchids.
The council said cutting on the road's verges had been temporarily paused to allow the bright flowers to finish flowering and go to seed.
It said it hoped the move would see more orchids grow in the area in the future.
The summer campaign hopes to raise awareness of the council's work to increase biodiversity in verges
The authority is currently running a Love Your Verge campaign.
Under the conservation efforts, it said roadside verges were being cut "where we must to keep roads safe and growing where we can to help our pollinators".
New signs have been put up across the county to show where conservation verges will be in place over the summer months.
A number of verges in Dorset are already recognised as Sites of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI) by Dorset Wildlife Trust, external.
Bee orchid: Ophrys apifera
The bee orchid is a sneaky mimic as it flower looks like a female bee
Males fly in to try to mate with it and end up pollinating the flower
The right bee species does not live here, so the orchid is self-pollinated in the UK
Source: Dorset Wildlife Trust
The bee and more common bright pink pyramidal orchids can both be seen on chalk grassland from June to July.
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