Council workers have removed this civic flowerbed after it was grown “in the shape of a swastika”.

Red-faced gardeners hastily dug up the blue centaurea perennial display after complaints from that it looked like the infamous Nazi symbol.

The display was spotted on a roundabout next to the train station in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.

North Somerset Council said the symbol was created by accident after certain flowers were removed, leaving just the outline of the swastika.

A spokesman explained: “This planting formed part of a random pattern in one of the flower beds we maintain.

“When summer bedding was removed in November, the centaurea perennials were left in place to give the bed a splash of winter colour and so the bed was not totally bare.

“After we had a call about the pattern we have taken all the plants out. They are due to be replaced soon with sustainable planting and a sculpture designed by students from Weston College.”

The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles. It can represent eternity in East Asian culture and Buddhism, but it was adopted as a symbol of the Nazi Party of Germany.