Category Archives: Gardens

Winter Interest

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It’s a bit unorthodox to be writing about gardens in the bleak midwinter, but we all need a bit of greenery in our lives, especially when the sky matches the grey Kennington pavements.

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Harleyford Road Community Garden in Vauxhall wsd created by the demolition of a terrace of Georgian properties in the 1970’s which featured inordinately large front gardens. In 1984 the progressive residents of nearby Bonnington Square agreed to work in partnership with Lambeth to turn the site into a place of quiet refuge amongst the nearby smog and snarl.

 

 

 

 

The arboreal product of the partnership  created 36 years ago persists to this day, and even in winter offers a great place for the public to stroll, eat a sandwich, reflect, or just experience an element of silence. The garden is divided into several different areas and includes a children’s play area, lawns, benches, picnic areas, and a mossy green pond. It prides itself on being the only accessible wildlife site in the area.

The Garden is still maintained by volunteers from Bonnington Square,  and it without question possesses the quirky,  ‘planty’. and independent aesthetic of the Square. This is evident in the mosaic wall and paving stones implanted with chipped china  and rocks. In reality the entire layout of the Gardens are the masterwork of Bonnington residents, and well done.

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With no small amount of surreal irony our quiet, pastoral refuge is sponsored by the rather notorious nightclub ‘Fire’. As intrepid and responsible local journalists we approached Runoff management about getting to the bottom of this relationship (in a strictly professional capacity of course) by actually going to Fire at 3am last Saturday. We were rapidly rebuked and informed that this would be ‘inappropriate’ and ‘compromise the ethos of the site’. Well lets see about that and watch this space.

The Gardens are very kid friendly and also placid and safe for people on their own who seek solace and serenity. Enjoy!

Roots and Shoots

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Having just spent the past week dodging raindrops in Scotland, we fully appreciate that summer is a fleeting thing.  So without further adieu we would like to make you aware, or remind you of, a wonderful little green space in our not very green patch of earth.

Roots and Shoots is a registered charity and vocational hub dedicated to educating disaffected young people aged 16 -25 in Lambeth and Southwark and preparing them for the world of work through one year internships in areas such as horticulture and retail.  It’s also a green space for urban biodiversity and is frequently visited by school groups eager to learn more about plants and how much of our food is grown.

The roughly half acre around Roots and Shoots is quite a unique space and presents itself less as a garden and more as an active, urban farm and space for insects and urban animals to grow and thrive. On our visit we saw tomatoes, marrows and blackberries ready to be harvested in addition to loads of veg which we had never heard of.  Unlike Walworth Garden (which we wrote about in June) Roots and Shoots does not provide a wealth of places to sit and ponder but loads of space to wander and ponder and is open to the public daily.

If you’re keen to get involved in Roots and Shoots you can attend one of their ‘Magpie Kitchen’ pop up dinner nights or hire a room for an event. They also have a fun ‘apple day’ in early October where you can learn about apples, buy apple juice, and maybe even throw apples if the mood takes you there….

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North Lambeth Parish Fete – It’s a Thing

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The annual North Lambeth Fete is back on 22 Jun from 12:30 to 4:30pm, and its a thing.  We’ve never been as we usually opt for the Cleaver Sq. Fete, which has apparently been moved to Christmas in order to avoid clashing with this event. This is a bit of a shame, as we’ll miss the annual Cleaver summer spectacle of Kate Hoey getting heckled, a slightly drunk Vicar acting as MC, and a wholly inappropriate Punch and Judy show for the kids. But life goes on…

While we may have never before been to the Fete, we have been to the gardens of Lambeth Palace and they are stunning, extensive and almost never open to the public. The price of the ticket itself justifies a wander around.   According to our sources, the North Lambeth Fete is more kid friendly than its Cleaver counterpart and is known for its dog show and features prizes, including fastest sausage eater and least obedient (we assume these prizes are for the dogs and not humans). There is also face painting, live music, and races for the kids. And if you don’t have kids there’s a Pimms tent to keep you sane. And if you do have kids there’s a Pimms tent to keep you sane.

To whet you appetite we found this totally manic video on YouTube. Free coffee mugs!!!!

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The Gardening Museum and a Scary Tony Blair Gnome

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Our second gardening blog in a week, you lucky devils! Over the weekend we popped over to the Gardening Museum to inspect it’s not so recent (2017) renovation and to see if it’s worth getting your hands dirty for.

The museum is set within a 12thcentury church next to Lambeth Palace (and visitors can climb the original tower). Surprisingly, the church was  almost demolished in the 1970’s but saved by gardening enthusiasts (and Charlie Chaplin)  keen to preserve the memory of John Tradescant, who’s garden themed tomb still stands in the outside garden. The deconsecrated church setting is one of the primary features.

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The museum itself is on the small side and encompasses bedding design, implements, seeds, and how ‘plant hunters’ brought plants to the UK from around the world which still flourish to this day. There are also paintings and sketches. The exhibits also includes interesting displays of old lawn mowers, FlyMo’s and even (wait for it) a collection of garden gnomes!  Our favourite is a slightly psychotic gnome which bears an uncanny resemblance to Tony Blair:

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The author of 90% of content here on the Runoff was undertaken by my brilliant predessesor who heretofore shall be referred to as ‘Jamie’. Jamie was a big fan of the café at the Gardening Museum and s/he made it their number one pick for best local restaurant earlier this year (In case you wondered Jamie isn’t dead). It is bright, open to the gardens and very informal if not a bit pricey. A little courtyard in the middle of the restaurant is dominated by the tomb of William Bligh (of Mutiny on the Bounty fame) and family. The inscription to his wife being every bit as moving as that of his on the front.

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At £10 the museum is a bit on the steep side but if you want to get the dirt on gardening it is certainly the place to be. And it has a nice shop!

Walworth Garden

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We live in a lovely and luscious enclave of central London, but to be frank it isn’t the greenest place on earth. If you are ever in need of a little botanical realness in your life you could do a lot worse than pop over to the little gem that is Walworth Garden in East Kennington

In addition to being a great place to stroll around, sit and reflect (they have loads of benches), they also sell plants. If you’re fortunate enough to have a garden they can give you great ideas about what to plant and how to plant things. If your garden is in your front room they also sell a range of indoor plants. Walworth also has an apiary. When we first heard this we got very excited about the possibility of seeing actual apes. An apiary is in fact a place where bees are kept and feature centrally in what they do. Their honey harvest in July is an annual feature.

In addition to the many luxurious plants, Walworth also offers training courses for gardeners and a range of workshops including making eco friendly cleaning products, incense, oils, cosmetics and soap. Imagine the fun you could have by giving rosemary infused window cleaner as presents to your friends for the fifth year on the trot.

Walworth Garden is not a garden centre per se but it a registered charity, and they accept donations. However, they also have a  very good gardening service, as recommended by a friend of the Runoff.

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