Cyclist's flower power spreads the love after potholes bloom in icy weather

I read once that the best way to tackle a muddy path full of puddles when on a mountain bike was to take a leap of faith and plough straight through the middle of them, the reason being that the ground is firmest at the deepest part of the puddle. Or something like that. Whatever the science, it's a technique I have employed pretty successfully over the years, forgetting six inches of front suspension can make up for a multitude of rider errors.

Thus it is not a technique to be employed in rush hour when faced with what looks like a puddle but which is, in fact, a water-filled pothole. Fixing a blown out front tyre with nail varnish and a plaster is a story for another day.

The pothole situation has worsened dramatically this winter when water which had seeped into cracks in the road then froze, opening them up. Cycling organisation CTC has seen a spike in the number of holes reported to its Fill That Hole website – 3,500 were reported in January, compared with 750 in December last year. The Local Government Association has asked the Department of Transport for emergency funds of £100m to deal with the most pressing repairs. In 2009, councils filled 968,195 potholes – or one every 33 seconds.

Roger Geffen, the campaigns director for the CTC said: "We've had a substantial spike in reports but councils are taking notice and acting upon it, filling them in. The problem is they can't get everywhere to find them in the first place." He estimates that at least 30-40% of the holes that are reported are dealt with.

But one man has had enough. And he's using flowers to prove it. Forget stuffing them down the barrels of guns, Pete Dungey has been tirelessly ridding Oxford of its potholes by filling them up with primroses. "It began as part of a project called 'subvert the familiar'," says the graphic design student. "I wanted to do something that would grab attention but also raise awareness of an issue, and so the project was born. I have been planting the gardens for about a fortnight now and see it as an ongoing thing."

"Potholes are a big problem that could be eradicated quite simply. Hopefully it's something that grabs attention and raises awareness although I wouldn't call myself a renegade cyclist."

Pete currently works alone but he's hoping other people will follow his example. If you do, he's asking you to take a snap and email it to him via his website.

As a mountain biker I'm all in favour of practising my swerving skills before work, zig-zagging between pot holes. Roger, however, has some more useful advice for urban cyclists: "Firstly, try not to go through any puddles. But more importantly – and certainly more importantly than usual – don't hug the kerb, because that's where most of them are."