November 2023

28
Wanstead Village Directory
In 2021, Ingrid Howarth turned the traffic
roundabout opposite the gates of The
George car park into a delightfully quirky
Island Garden, much beloved by drivers
and all who live near it. An enormous
amount of work went into creating it and
there is ongoing maintenance. You’d think
that would be enough for Ingrid, but no.
In the true tradition of us community
gardeners, a forgotten, neglected patch
of public soil needs to be adopted and
transformed with another enormous
amount of work.
Just a hop and a skip away from the Island
Garden was the most forgotten and neglected
patch in Wanstead. The challenge proved
irresistible. Over 10 years ago, large concrete
blocks sealed off a half-circle patch of land
over the top of the A12 where the tunnel
under George Green emerges. Maybe it was
a security measure for the Olympics? Who
knows? The blocks stayed and the patch
went dormant, slowly filling with rubbish.
Shrubs died and a thick mat of ivy covered the
ground, swarming over the concrete blocks
and obliterating the footpath. Overgrown,
surrounded by roads and with the A12
emerging underneath, it was an unlikely site
for a new garden.
in the colder months. Within an incredible 10
weeks, a garden had been created out of this
sad, neglected patch. Next year, tall flowering
plants will be visible over the concrete blocks.
The locals, now using the long-lost footpath
around the blocks, peer with delight into
this secret garden. They are well aware of
Ingrid’s record of magicking gardens from
unpromising patches.
As well as making the interior attractive,
Ingrid wanted to make the outside equally
appealing. To keep the drivers happy, flower
beds have been made outside the blocks
along the footpath. She dug down into the
gravel, created wooden surrounds from
skip-harvesting and filled these frames
with compost and soil from wherever.
Again, everything planted there
thrives. It’s a sight for sore eyes in the
most unexpected of places.
Ingrid made the hop and the skip, saw
the potential and got started.
Some 37 builders’ bags later,
the soil was revealed, ready
for planting. The 37 bags
– the ones that take a
tonne of topsoil – Ingrid
filled with a massive
amount of accumulated
rubbish, ivy and dead
shrubs. Our thanks to the
council’s wire truck crew
who collected all this.
The soil revealed seemed to
be tired, but once planting started,
it got its second wind. Everything planted
there seems to thrive. Stock came from the
Corner House Garden, the Gravel Garden
and, of course, Ingrid’s Island. This protected
half-circle of future garden has its own micro
climate and will probably be very sheltered
For more information on the work of
the Wanstead Community Gardeners,
visit wnstd.com/wcg
To advertise, call 020 8819 6645 or visit wnstd.com