Popular wildflower meadow on verge of Belfast road cut down due to ‘road safety' concerns

Belfast Telegraph

4 days ago

Residents were shocked to find the meadow cut to within a few centimetres last Wednesday, May 21, after looking forward to its annual bloom.
Ryan Bradley lives close to the area — a short distance from the Forestside Shopping Centre — and had unofficially 'adopted' the grass verge in 2023 to plant a native wildflower patch to boost biodiversity among pollinators in the area.
He had placed a sign on the verge asking for it not to be cut — and for the past couple of years it hadn't been, allowing wildflowers to flourish.
A spokesperson for the DfI, however, said that the area in question is part of a 'sightline' and needed to be cut to 'ensure visibility for all road users'.
'The department is responsible for the maintenance of the public road network and annually cuts about 45,000km of grass verges,' they said.
'The area in question, on the Saintfield Road, is part of a sightline and was cut to ensure increased visibility for all road users.
'We are committed to protecting wildlife and promoting biodiversity, and our grass-cutting policy was amended in 2022 to reflect that. However, road safety must always be our priority.'
Mr Bradley told the Belfast Telegraph that the reason he selected that particular verge was because it was far enough back from the road to ensure it did not impact motorists.
"While I haven't had any official permission to do this, over the past couple of years I didn't think there had been any problems, as wildflowers had been left alone,' he said.
'They were not left to grow to a ridiculous height, and I maintain it myself. I cut it every September or early October, and every fortnight I edge the area to prevent these so-called sightline issues.
'The only motorists who would be affected would be those emerging from the junction from Breda Park, turning right towards Forestside. But there is a cycle path and a large space of pavement before you can even see the flowers, so this just doesn't make sense.
'If that was an issue, why didn't they just take the sign down? It's taller than the flowers ever get to! And the flowers hadn't even begun to bloom yet.'
He added that it was even more disappointing that this happened during a well-known conservation campaign called 'No Mow May', which encourages people to refrain from mowing their lawns for the month of May to boost biodiversity and support pollinators.
'I manage grasslands for a living with a local conservation charity and anyone working in this sector would know that you don't cut this early in the year,' he said.
'The first flowers, usually the Cuckoo flower, comes out in April, and different species bloom in succession until September, the last one usually being the Devil's-bit Scabious.
'I was expecting the verge to take about five years to establish, because it takes time to maintain these sorts of meadows. But I only got two. Whoever did this clearly hadn't a clue.
'Even if it was done by accident, an apology would be great. But this won't put me off. I still hope to continue to plant wildflowers and improve the biodiversity of the area by doing so.'