A blooming shame... no flowers for town’s 70th birthday

THEY were meant to be bursting with colour and floral pageantry.

But the showpiece flower beds which were meant to help mark a town’s 70th birthday celebrations are empty – after council officials failed to order any plants.

Bare earth and weeds are on show where vibrant displays should be.

Roundabouts in Glenrothes, Fife, are also bereft of their usual bounty of blossoms.

Fife Council said an order for plants placed in November had not been processed properly, and no one had realised it had not been received by suppliers until it was too late.

Now, the flower gardens of Riverside Park – usually full of colour and the jewel in Glenrothes’ horticultural crown – are drab.

David Cooper, a founder member of the Friends of Riverside Park group, said he was disappointed the summer planting had not been car-

‘Beds empty apart from weeds’

ried out, adding: ‘This is despite full planting at other Fife parks, such as Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy.

‘Members of the public using the park have expressed dismay about the usually colourful flower beds lying empty apart from a few weeds, despite the wonderful summer.

‘This seems to be a big oversight, particularly when groups like Go Glenrothes have been promoting the 70th anniversary celebrations.

‘I hope this oversight will be rectified soon.’

Damien Woods, Fife Council’s parks, streets and open spaces manager, apologised for the bungle and said plants had been ordered.

He added: ‘Once we discovered there was an issue, we did our best to get hold of bedding plants from a range of nurseries but couldn’t get large quantities.

‘It’s a shame and I’m sorry this has disappointed park users.

‘Riverside Park itself still has an abundance of herbaceous, perennial bedding and the display celebrating Glenrothes at 70 has been saved.

‘Above the anniversary feature, there’s a poppy display paid for by the Royal British Legion.’