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Category Archives: Gardening
Council bureaucrat gives red light to Love Lane Green’s future
CROYDON COMMENTARY: A children’s play area, reclaimed from wasteland by volunteers over the last eight years, has had its important status erased with the stroke of a pen by a senior council official. EMMA HOPE-FITCH and the other Friends of … Continue reading
Posted in Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Environment, Gardening, Property, South Norwood, Wildlife, Woodside
Tagged Croydon, Croydon Council, Emma Hope-Fitch, Friends of Love Lane, Friends of Love Lane Green, Gavin Handford, London Borough of Croydon, Love Lane Green, South Norwood, Woodside
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Community farmers dig for victory with crowdfunder appeal
The organisers and volunteers at Sutton Community Farm, off Woodmansterne Lane in Wallington, have given themselves six weeks to raise £50,000 to secure the enterprise’s longer term future. Their crowdfunder opened last week, offering rewards to contributors ranging from engaging … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Environment, Gardening, Sutton Council
Tagged Sutton, Sutton Community Farm, Wallington, Woodmansterne
2 Comments
Shirley care home celebrates the garden legacy of Rev Wilks
A special ceremony has been held at the MHA Hall Grange care home in Shirley to make the centenary of the death of the leading horticulturalist, and the person who created The Wilderness garden, Rev William Wilks. Rev Wilks arrived … Continue reading
You can help save the bees, just like Jeremy Clarkson…
When even Jeremy Clarkson, the king of Britain’s petrolheads, says that we’re heading for an “insect annihilation”, then you know there must be something wrong. Clarkson, on his Amazon TV show Clarkson’s Farm, vowed to do something about the loss … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Croydon Friends of the Earth, Environment, Gardening, Wildlife
Tagged Bees, Clarkson's Farm, Friends of the Earth, Jeremy Clarkson
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Council’s once-prized listed building Heathfield House left to rot
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The borough’s built heritage is crumbling into a worrying state of disrepair, with no one at the council seemingly aware of the seriousness of the situation. By PEARL LEE, our south of the borough correspondent Any Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in Addington, Art, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Environment, Gardening, Heathfield House, History, Property, Riesco Collection, Wildlife
Tagged Addington Hills, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Ecology Centre, Gravel Hill, Heathfield House, London Borough of Croydon, New Addington, Raymond Riesco, Riesco collection
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Help precious pollinators by getting your own Bee Saver Kit
There are unprecedented challenges facing the world, but our fragile food system would be put under even more strain if we lose our bees. Bees pollinate 75per cent of our main food crops worldwide, but right now they are dying … Continue reading
Wassailing helps Wilderness garden’s ‘green prescription’
The Wilderness garden in Shirley is expecting bumper crops this year, after their fruit trees and vegetable patch received a visit from a group of merry wassailers… More than 100 people attended the event in the historic garden, once the … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Croydon parks, Environment, Gardening, Shirley North
Tagged MHA Hall Grange, Rev William Wilks, Shirley, Shirley Poppy, The Wilderness
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Take an hour this month to monitor your garden’s bird life
The conservation charity the RSPB is appealing for as many volunteers as possible to give up one hour of their day later this month to take part in 2023’s Big Garden Birdwatch. The Big Garden Birdwatch is an annual event … Continue reading
Take a walk on the wild side in Shirley with Wilderness Sundays
A historic Croydon garden is opening its doors today and once every month to offer skills-building sessions and an opportunity to visit the venue. The Wilderness is a seven-acre garden in Shirley, situated within MHA Hall Grange, a care home … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Gardening, Shirley North, Wildlife
Tagged MHA Hall Grange, Shirley, Shirley Poppy, The Wilderness, Wilderness Garden
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Whitehorse Road and its ‘critical’ bees to get an upgrade
The council has decided to spend the bulk of a £85,000 government grant on “updating” Whitehorse Road Recreation Ground in Selhurst. The Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities provided the modest amount of funding to improve parks and green … Continue reading
Volunteer makes a country park bench fit for the Queen
Not for the first time, volunteers – in this case Jonathan Tolhurst – have done something which, really, ought to be carried out by Croydon’s council. If only they had the money…
Garden centre offers to help you enjoy the fruits of your labours
Dobbies is hosting a free Grow How session in its Woodcote Green store, with a live demonstration on how to grow your own fruit bowl. Ideal for beginners and seasoned gardeners, Dobbies’ Grow How interactive workshop will take place on … Continue reading
Thames Water imposes hosepipe ban but still can’t fix leaks
Flood warnings one day, a hosepipe ban the next… That’s the reality in Croydon in the climate crisis. Thames Water this morning confirmed what had been widely expected after two months of drought that has seen the source of the … Continue reading
Council rejects private school’s planning scheme for Heathfield
A planning application from a private education business to make extensive alterations to Heathfield House, a listed building owned by Croydon Council, has been refused. As Inside Croydon reported in June, Cressey College has been renting the building from the … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Education, Gardening, Heathfield House, Nicola Townsend, Planning, Property, Sarah Jones MP, Schools, Selsdon and Addington Village
Tagged Cressey College, Croydon, Croydon Council, Heathfield House, London Borough of Croydon, Sarah Jones MP
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Hosepipe ban ‘in weeks’ as second heat health warning issued
Five more days of 30-degrees-plus temperatures, and with no sign of rain any time soon has seen Thames Water follow other companies in issuing drought notifications The summer-long drought and another heatwave with temperatures over 30 degrees for several days … Continue reading
Shirley’s Wilderness garden banks on help from volunteers
A Croydon care home that is surrounded by a notable and historic garden has been enjoying the benefits of some special care and attention from a big corporate team-bonding exercise. Staff from Standard Chartered Bank picked The Wilderness, a seven-acre … Continue reading
Garden centre offers Christmas on a plate with veg advice
You might not want to go to the lengths of rearing your own Christmas turkey in your backyard, but one local garden centre is offering free sessions to show you how to grow all the vegetables you might need for … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Environment, Gardening
Tagged Dobbies, Wallington, Woodcote Green
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Pupils show they know their onions on Surrey Street stall
Croydon pupils turned market traders last week, selling fruit and vegetables grown by their schools at Surrey Street Market, as part of a programme promoting healthy eating, cooking and sustainability. Thirty pupils from The Link Secondary, Shirley High and Meridian … Continue reading
The day I saved 7 street trees – with the help of Inside Croydon
CROYDON COMMENTARY: Stirred into action by our report about street trees being in desperate need of some care and attention during the heatwave, loyal reader LEWIS WHITE, right, set off armed with his watering can and a handful of copies … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Community associations, Coulsdon, Croydon parks, Education, Environment, Gardening, Wildlife
Tagged Coulsdon, Lewis White, Street trees
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9ft fence for special school could ruin listed Heathfield House
Our south of the borough correspondent, PEARL LEE, on the disposal of another of Croydon’s heritage assets – with a listed building being rented out on the cheap to a multi-million-pound education company that charges its pupils up to £81,000 … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Education, Environment, Gardening, Heathfield House, Planning, Property, Schools, Selsdon and Addington Village
Tagged Conservative, Cressey College, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Ecology Centre, Heathfield House, Peter Mitchell, Tory
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