mely recovery from its summer-long weed and algae headache.

With thousands descending on the park for the Bank Holiday weekend and Poole Park Fest, the green slime and accompanying pungent pong had largely disappeared.

Poole council has been fighting a constant battle to tame the outbreak of tasselweed and algae, which has provided the lake with a sludgy green surface since June.

The combination of unusually warm weather earlier in the summer and high nutrient levels in the lake was blamed.

But a cooling off in temperatures has helped dissolve much of the weed.

Clare Freeman, the council’s greenspace manager, said: “We are pleased that the cooler weather has helped significantly reduce the amount of algae in Poole Park lake, with large areas of water appearing clear.

“As the algae is a naturally occurring phenomenon, it could return should we experience warmer weather but we hope the level of growth will not be so extreme as days are getting cooler and shorter.”

Users of the lake, including Rockley Watersports and model boat clubs, saw their activities badly disrupted.

The council tried several tactics to try and shift the invading green slime and curb its rate of growth.

The 40-acre lake was flushed twice with seawater from the harbour, with limited success.

An inky blue dye was also added to the water to restrict the amount of sunlight being absorbed and inhibit growth.

The council said it would continue to monitor the lake and take any action required.

Ms Freeman added: “Poole Park is a Green Flag park and we would encourage people to visit and make the most of the family fun on offer.”