Abundant and rare flora which brightens up the Westcountry roadsides and byways could be under threat from over-enthusiastic councils, a charity has warned.
Plantlife says it has genuine fears that accidental mismanagement could destroy wildflower rich verges which are literally being mown into extinction.
The campaign group says that millions of people drive along roads without realising that the verges are home to a fantastic variety of plants.
It says the A30 and A38 roads in Devon and Cornwall alone support more than 1,000 acres of flower-rich grassland, with just one junction home to six orchid species including bee orchids and 1,100 greater butterfly orchids.
Road verges support as many as a thousand plant species across the country and are important for rare plant species such as long-leaved helleborine and bastard balm, which are among the 33 wayside flowers threatened with extinction.
As well as being home to a myriad of species of flowering plants, Plantlife says they provide food for wildlife ranging from bees to birds and mammals.
However, many of the country's wildflower verges are being damaged by repeated mowing when plants are flowering, smothered by cuttings left in the aftermath or sprayed off with herbicides.
Plantlife's Dr Trevor Dines said: "It is almost ironic that the way we manage our road verges now encourages coarse and thuggish plants.
"Most verges, smothered in cuttings, might as well be just strips of concrete.
"Plantlife receives more calls on this subject than any other, from members of the public distraught and angry that their favourite verges full of cowslips and orchids are being mown down in the name of neatness and good management."
The charity is calling for councils to manage the almost 600,000 acres (238,000 hectares) of roadside verges around the country to help protect native flowers, and the pollinators and other wildlife that relies on them.
It says the huge loss of meadows from the UK makes roadside verges and the habitat they create even more important, Plantlife said, with verges providing twice as much grassland as is left in the countryside.
The wildflowers are a vital food source for pollinators such as bees and butterflies, many of which have seen major declines in recent years, while if they are left to seed it provides food for birds and small mammals.
The charity said the verges should be managed in the same way as meadows historically were, with a cut early in the year and another in late summer, with the cuttings removed.
But three quarters of councils surveyed by Plantlife cut their verges multiple times over the summer and none collected the cuttings.
This means flowers are being cut down before they can set seed and return energy to the rootstock, while the ground is smothered with cuttings that rot down and add nutrients to the soil, making it too rich for most wildflowers.
Only species such as nettles, docks and coarse grasses benefit from the management, which Plantlife said was imposed to keep verges looking neat and tidy.
Mike Jones, chairman of the Local Government Association's environment and housing board, said tidy roadside verges helped motorists by providing a clear line of sight.
He added: "However, councils must strike the right balance between road safety and wildlife."
