Anonymous gardeners give neglected land a makeover

2 hours ago

Hope Sikoliain Ipswich

News image — The Guerrilla Gardeners use their own tools as they are not funded

Jon Wright/BBC Three women standing in front of a brick wall. The woman in the middle is holding a black bag over her face and those to either side of her are holding plastic watering cans over their faces. — The Guerrilla Gardeners use their own tools as they are not funded

Three women are transforming patches of vacant land in their town centre into urban gardens.

The self-proclaimed Guerrilla Gardeners meet in Ipswich every Wednesday afternoon to cultivate what they call two Meanwhile Gardens, a name that reflects the possibility of the plots being bought and developed in the future.

Their dedication to improving the landscape on Upper Orwell Street has led to them being nominated for a BBC Radio Suffolk Make A Difference Award.

They said they chose not to be identified to ensure that the focus was on the gardening and not themselves.

Jon Wright/BBC A black sign with the words “Pop Up Garden Help us keep it beautiful” on a wooden pole is stuck in the ground and surrounded by wild green plants. — The group welcomes volunteers to help maintain the gardens

The women said they decided to take the initiative after being "offended" by a heavily littered corner of land they regularly walked by.

They spent an afternoon collecting rubbish but were further inspired by a trip to Colchester.

"They had a rubble garden there, and they've also got roundabouts that have been planted with advice from Beth Chatto about things that will grow in gravel and don't need lots of watering, and it's looking spectacular.

"So we thought if they can do it, we can do it!"

Jon Wright/BBC A woman in a blue tweed cap and a green patterned top is bending over to pick up rubbish in tall grass. She is wearing red gloves and is holding a black bag and a litter picker in her left hand. — The dedicated women work on the gardens for a couple of hours each week, no matter the weather

Jon Wright/BBC A brick wall in a garden that has been painted over in a white paint. The words Meanwhile Garden have been painted on it in different colours. There are some bushes, flowers and vegetation nearby. It is a sunny day. — The Guerrilla Gardeners conserve the natural flora by pruning and watering

Despite being on the site of a demolished shop with almost impenetrable ground, Meanwhile 1, the first of the two gardens, is home to "at least 50 species" of wild plants, including brightly flowered buddleias (butterfly bushes), cow parsley and viper's bugloss, the group said.

An ecologist and friend of the group also found rich insect life in both gardens.

The Guerrilla Gardeners conserve the natural flora by pruning and watering, and add to the landscape by planting the occasional flower.

They also repurpose material they find dumped on the sites, such as using a frying pan to create a pool for birds and critters to cool off in the heat.

Jon Wright/BBC A small pool of water in the grass with pebbles in and around it. There is a black sign with “Cornflowers” written on it, and a stalk with yellow flowers at the foreground of the photo. — The Guerrilla Gardeners find creative and inexpensive ways to make the gardens beautiful

"We like what we have done, we can see the difference we have made," they said.

"People talk to us every week and thank us for what we do.

"We have built our friendships and have widened our circle of Guerrilla Gardeners and we hope we will encourage others to take on a little patch themselves."

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