COUNTRY life has come to the city - thanks to an unusual conservation exercise by Worcester City Council.
The council has borrowed 12 cattle from a local farmer to help encourage wild flowers to grow on Ronkswood Hill Meadows. The cows arrived on Monday and will graze the nature reserve for the summer, keeping the grass short enough to allow an array of wild flowers to have enough sunlight to grow.
Black knapweed, cowslips and birdsfoot trefoil are among the species growing in the meadow, but if the grass grows too long the flowers will not flourish.
The city council's green network officer Warwick Neale said: "Cattle are part of nature's management plan and help to maintain the balance of plant life and wildlife, however they have not been a permanent fixture on the meadows for more than 30 years.
"We are re-introducing the cattle for about six months in a bid to regain some of the traditional benefits of natural stewardship."
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