A TOTAL of 5,000 purple crocuses will brighten up the West Somerset spring thanks to a planting scheme organised by the Minehead and Quantocks Rotary Club – with the enthusiastic help of local first school pupils.

As part of a world-wide ‘End Polio Now’ campaign, Minehead and Quantocks Rotary Club has arranged to have the flowers planted in key locations.

Organiser Carl Horrocks said the reason for the colour purple was that children treated in Third World countries under the immunisation scheme, in which the rotary club was involved, had their fingers dipped in purple ink.

He said that children at Dunster and Minehead first schools had a fun time learning to plant the crocuses and 500 more had been planted at Minehead Methodist Church.

Further crocuses will bring splashes of colour to Blenheim Gardens and to a large ‘Rotary’ logo near the Ellicombe roundabout.