SIR — Re "Shoddy Minehead has a knock-on effect" (Your Letters May 11), I really don't think so!

The holidaymakers seem to head for the shops mostly, and the borders in Blenheim Park and the flower beds in town are a riot of colour, which one hopes they enjoy.

It is doubtful they are really interested in how the verges on the approach to their holiday destination look after a possibly long and tedious journey.

Now how about this? These plants - dandelions, daisies, celandines, buttercups, cow parsley, cats-ear daisies, goosegrass, marguerites, pink campion, plantain, wild angelica, cornflowers (who put those there?), vetch and a positive plethora of beautiful and delicate grasses, all offer food and cover for bees, butterflies, ladybirds and many other insects.

All this life is happening for us to see along the verges to Minehead, and your two correspondents on this subject want to see men armed to the hilt with mowers and strimmers and helmets and masks mashing up all this beauty. Why?

Seaward Way is positively swaying with colourful wild flowers. A stretch of the Porlock Road also was, until some jobsworth came along and slashed the cow parsley to the ground, not even clearing it up - so blocked drains next, one supposes.

We know the reason for not having verges cut. Live with it, and let nature do the same.

Before anyone says "I bet your garden is trim and weeded", well yes it is, but a small area of it has been left to "see what grows"!

Here is an example. I have had the joy of seeing a surprising number of orange tip butterflies in the garden and wondered why. Looking up what they like to feed upon I read they have a delection for cuckoo flower. Well, it's there, not planted by me, but I haven't chopped it either.

Your correspondent on this subject last week also twice mentions the revenue that might be lost on car parking fees because we haven't cut the verges.

Has he taken a walk alongside the Culvercliffe car park recently? It is rare indeed to see a car parked there displaying a ticket, and one doubts very much every one is a resident with a season ticket.

Ros Robinson,

Bratton Lane,

Minehead.