Bus trip - Paradise Park

Paradise Park is a medium-sized park in Islington.

The Children's Centre is supposed to have a living wall - however it appears to have died (perhaps in the cold winter)

Sturdy granite seating

Chess tables

Chess tables

Raised beds (and Maureen)

Play area with equipment and palm trees

Meadow area - mostly thistles and few flowers

Dog enforcement - could we have these signs in Lambeth?

We liked/ thought:

-Peace garden – layout contemplative and relaxed
-Disappointing green wall which had died
-Children’s Centre – play area

-Paradise – it wasn’t!
-Liked the raised beds

-Chess tables were nice
-Raised beds

-Chess tables

-No living wall!
-Had very good seating area/ dog –free with chess tables, seating and raised beds
-It had a lot of open space

-Raised beds
-Chess tables
-Dog-free area
-Meadow was disappointing – they are clearly tricky to maintain

Bus trip - Butterfield Green

Butterfield Green is a small community park in Stoke Newington.

Community orchard - award-winning planting outside the park creating attractive public space. Fruit trees grown to trail along wires to create a wall effect.

Entrance to the park

'Prairie planting' - inspired by ideas used at Potters Fields

The water feature - a rocky brook with running water

Children's bridge over the brook

Water pump and water play table

Area with playground and table tennis tables

We liked/ thought:

-Table tennis – ideal – cheap and cheerful
-Water pump – cheap, cheerful and fun
-Orchard on the road – could be on the edge of Rec on by the sides of park

-Water feature, rocks and water play table – no need for a playground!
-Table tennis

-Water feature – pump and stream – bridge – popular with children
-Naturalistic and low maintenance
-Urban orchard – road feature

-Liked the water feature which coupled as play area
-Also lots of activities like table tennis

-Water feature
-Orchard – apple trees as a boundary
-Central feature – gathering place
-Popular with children/ families
-Water feature/ playground integral with park
-Kids play in the woods area

-Excellent water feature – fun river for children to play in
-Table tennis tables

Bus trip - Potters Fields

Potters Fields is a small park on the riverside next to City Hall and Tower Bridge. It was renovated and newly planted fairly recently.

Entrance metalwork


Planting by Dutch gardener - use of grasses and complimentary plants. Subtle colouring and few 'flowers'.

Granite seating with colourful pattern resonate of pottery


Multi-trunked birch trees (and Suda)


Neglected food growing area

We liked/ thought:

-Planting – relaxed, grasses, swathe of subtle colour – attractive for butterflies
-benches/ seating – contemporary feel
-trees – white trunks – contemporary feel

-Planting and trees
-Decorative benches, though didn’t like the individual benches which only seat one person
-Entrance is good, but unusual

-Attractive colourful low-maintenance planting
-Bonded resin paths!

-Seating is most attractive and colourful
-Raised flower beds could go over the raised mounds of graves
-Flowers on the edge of footpaths

-Entrance railings
-Granite edging
-Birch trees

-Planting - alive, colourful, sustainable

-Benches with porcelain patterns, and liked the individual bench seats

-Shiny, sharp, modern materials

-Is there a role for prairie planting in the Rec- along the pathway?

Bus trip - Myatts Fields

Myatts Fields is a medium-sized Victorian Park in Brixton/ Camberwell, which has recently been extensively renovated and holds a Green Flag.

Railings


Wild area and pond

Bandstand

Children's wet play area

Astroturf on football pitch

We liked/ thought:

-attractive bandstand
-was the wild area properly maintained?

-Sunday music at the bandstand – attraction drawing people into the park

-café
-bandstand/ music
-peaceful atmosphere
-dog-free sitting/ sunbathing area

-water feature only works at certain times – reported to be good
-Victorian but contemporary

-nice toilets
-entrance planting
-bandstand

-loos
-children’s water feature – just pipes and a wet play area (flat and open)
-bandstand
-buildings are a focus of activity
-does a wild area work?
-the Rec has no central focus
-popularity of music

Bus trip - Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park

Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park is a medium-sized park in which the Imperial War Museum stands. We visited the rangers' area where fruit and veg are grown, the sports facilities, and an orchard area.

Growing plants up a wall

Mulberries

Runner beans

Good plant - Bowles Mauve

Bonded resin path - most of us liked it



Orchard - note spacing of the trees

Grapes and fruit bushes grown against a fence

What we liked:

-orchard
-sports facilities/ courts
-mulberry tree / fruit trees

-fruit and veg grown against a wall
-not prescriptively designed – people find the spaces for their mood/ activity
-tennis and sport – demand for it
-involvement of rangers important
-novelty of the mulberry tree

-beautiful mulberry tree (with public picking days)

-orchard and bushes grown up the wall

-fruit and veg as part of the ornamental planting around the park
-rangers involved