Marian Temple offers her thanks to the diverse range of local businesses which have all supported the work of the Wanstead Community Gardeners – from watering to welding
Wanstead Community Gardeners is a community group open to all people of any skill level who are interested in transforming Wanstead’s neglected public spaces.
We’re a good mix of Wanstead people – families with children, retired people and nine-to-five workers – and we all play our part in creating little patchwork gardens in each neglected space. Some of us are gardeners, some have the oomph to get rid of unwelcome sycamores, shift heavy sacks, fix up a trellis and all the extra stuff needed when creating living gardens, while some know little but want to be involved. But in addition to this, there are our backroom boys and girls in the form of local businesses that help us do the work we do.
Time, I think, to hand out some gongs for all those businesses who help us to function, create and maintain our patches.
Our thanks to Maz at Heads ‘n Tails, the pet shop, and to Daisy at the flower shop for giving us their walking wounded. They get planted around Wanstead and dance. Maz is ever helpful lending us his drill and countless other kindnesses.
Watering is a huge problem in these times of heatwavery. We try to plant in a way to minimise watering, but help from Little Bears Nursery, who keep our water butt filled at Wanstead Station, gives us the valuable water we need for the George Green fountain beds and those around the station. Kindred Nursery provides water for the new, thriving Belgique bed the other side of George Green.
This year, we have adopted two trees in the High Street, the ones planted in metal grids near Zoology, and decided to see if we could grow sweet peas and morning glories up the trunks. One tree was planted only this winter. New trees are so vulnerable in their first year before roots are spread and easily die from lack of water. Our thanks to the nearby Purbani restaurant for letting us use their tap. The newly planted tree looks very sad. Maybe we have lost it already, but the morning glories are rampaging up the trunk, showing off their piercing blue trumpets.
The McCartney garage in Grosvenor Road has been enormously useful in all things metal, straightening the bent tines of garden forks, cutting through the thick metal grids needed for climbers and much more difficult stuff. Without all this backup, the task of keeping Wanstead blooming would be much harder.
Our thanks to them all.
For more information on the work of the Wanstead Community Gardeners and to get involved, email wanstead.community.gardeners@gmail.com
