Wildflowers fill A35 roadside near Dorchester, Dorset

Wildflowers can now be seen decorating the roadsides by the Monkey’s Jump roundabout and Max Gate junction near Dorchester.

The idea to sow wildflowers along the roadside followed two recent drainage improvement schemes in these areas and created the opportunity to improve biodiversity and reduce costs.

The new wildflower verges can be seen alongside the A35, including species such as camomile, yellow rattle and cornflower (Image: National Highways)

Instead of importing topsoil and seeding to return the verges to grass, National Highways funded a scheme to introduce native wildflowers to the roadsides of the A35, which, it says, are not only visually appealing but will enhance and promote habitats for bees, butterflies and other insects.

National Highways’ Environmental Advisor Ben Hewlett said: “This is a great example of how we are moving away from simply minimising the impact of our work on the environmental impacts towards actually improving the environment through our work.

“We now have a policy to introduce low nutrient soils and wildflower verges as part of our major projects programme and working with groups such as Natural England and Butterfly Conservation, it’s good to see this spreading into our regional maintenance and improvement work.

The new wildflower verges can be seen alongside the A35, including species such as camomile, yellow rattle and cornflower (Image: National Highways)

“The seeds have now germinated alongside the A35, a wildflower grassland is beginning to form and this will continue to evolve over the coming years – basically it means less money spent, less in maintenance costs and more biodiversity.

“The increase in wildflowers will not only have wider biodiversity benefits and provide some impressive visual displays, but it will also help to connect people with nature and improve the wellbeing of millions of people using our roads every day.”

The new wildflower verges can be seen alongside the A35, including species such as camomile, yellow rattle and cornflower (Image: National Highways)

The varieties of wildflower that can be spotted alongside the A35 include the likes of Horseshoe and Kidney Vetch species, Bee Orchids, Cowslip and Oxeye Daisy, which, as well as being visually appealing, will play an important role in supporting pollinators and butterfly populations by providing abundant flowers as well as caterpillar food plants.

As part of the project, contractors Knighton Countryside Management created winter havens for species, such as toads, hedgehogs and snakes, out of the cuttings, and by avoiding the import of topsoil to the site, the project saved £75,000 in material and labour costs, as well as a significant saving in carbon emissions associated with haulage.

The verge before National Highways’ contractors Knighton Countryside Management started seeding work on the chalk landscape last autumn (Image: National Highways)

Clare Warburton, Natural England's Green Infrastructure Principal Advisor, said: “We welcome this change in the way road verges are designed and managed, and this could make a significant contribution to recovering nature on our verges.

The verge before National Highways’ contractors Knighton Countryside Management started seeding work on the chalk landscape last autumn (Image: National Highways)

“Low nutrient verges can help to reduce the likelihood of invasive species like creeping thistle, and increase native species we love to see, like oxeye daisy and bird’s-foot trefoil and even rarer flowers, such as orchids, as well as being great for bees and pollinators.”