GEESE have been accused of ruining flower beds in York’s Memorial Gardens, leading to further calls from members of the public for their numbers to be controlled.

This picture was taken by a resident in York who was disappointed to see the damage done to flower beds in the city by the geese, and called for action.

One resident of Westgate Apartments, who did not wish to be named, said: “I noticed a couple of letters last week referring to the current geese problem in York.

“I’d like to support the request that something is done to reduce their numbers as, walking past the Memorial Gardens this morning, it was obvious that they’re doing enormous damage to the flower beds which were only planted out a few weeks ago.

“The footpaths along the river are also disgusting and are a problem to both residents and tourists, the council will have to sort this out before all the flower beds are destroyed, and the parks and paths become no-go areas.”

Last week, York councillor George Barton, who represents Wheldrake and is the Conservative’s shadow spokesman for culture, suggested a “humane cull” of geese in York after the number of birds in the city increased.

Coun Barton told The Press the geese had multiplied since the breeding season, left foul mess across the city, and were “also a threat to children and other people”, who ate in the street.

Dave Meigh, City of York Council’s operations manager, said: “We’ve not had any complaints about geese eating flowers this year but have done so in previous years when we found that they had a liking for French marigolds. When we know what plants geese like eating, we stop buying them.

“Unfortunately, geese also do eat grass and, as they move across grassed areas, they sometimes trample the plants.

“This autumn we are looking to support a student project which will be gathering more evidence of what plants geese do and don’t like eating. In the meantime as part of our commitment to deterring geese, we continue to urge people not to feed geese in the city.”