Green Spaces Project of
the Month
October
2002 - Chumleigh
Multicultural Gardens
Contact: Chris Wildhaber, Park Ranger
020 7525 1078
Chumleigh
Multicultural Gardens are like an oasis
in the green desert of South London's
Burgess Park. The Oriental,
Mediterranean, African and Caribbean,
Islamic and English gardens each contain
a wealth of plants and design elements
reminiscent of the regions and cultures
they represent. But their real relevance
is revealed through projects and events
which encourage communities to
participate in interpreting plantings
from their own cultural perspectives. The
gardens are open to the public during
daylight hours.
History
and context
In
Chumleigh Garden's café I spotted,
mounted on the wall, a line from a poem
by Maya Angelou which reads “The
need for change bulldozed a road through
the centre of my mind.” This
powerful image describes very well the
impression Burgess Park makes.
Amidst
an area of high density housing, an urban
open space has been created by a gradual
programme, over several decades, of slum
clearance, clearing war time bomb damage
and reclaiming land where disused canals
once ran. In 1973 Southwark Council named
the park after Councilor Jessie Burgess,
Camberwell's first woman Mayor. The
original idea was to give `lungs' to the
city, although my initial feeling was
more of a green desert, redeemed to an
extent by quite recent plantings of
avenues of hopeful saplings.
In the
middle of this 54 hectare expanse of
otherwise forlorn grass stands a group of
Victorian buildings - Chumleigh
Almshouses - formerly home to the
Friendly Female Asylum for elderly and
frail ladies, and since 1978 Southwark's
Park Management depot.
In
1993, an article in Landscape Design
pointed out that “the site is in
need of an overall identity and sense of
purpose”. In an effort to restore
the earlier vision, BEN had input into
consultations with local communities, who
expressed interest in the idea for a
multicultural garden as a central focus
for the park.
A
feasibility study was conducted by
European Community Heritage Campus
Project students, with the support of
Reading University. For more information,
see the article in Landscape Research
journal (vol 26 No4 pages 351-556) called
`Ethnic Minority Groups and the Design of
Public Open Space: an inclusive
landscape?' by BEN network member Clare
Risbeth.
In 1996
a new post was created within the Park
Ranger Service in the Environment and
Leisure Department of Southwark Council.
The role of rangers, rather than wardens,
forms a vital link between the gardens
and the communities they serve.
Chris
Wildhaber is the Ranger. She sees her New
Zealand heritage and awareness of Maori
culture as the inspiration for her study
of `ethnobotany' which underpins her work
in one of the most ethnically diverse
London Boroughs. She told me that
“Many urban parks feature plants
from around the world. What makes
Chumleigh unique is its involvement with
local communities.”
As well
as creating and managing the
multicultural gardens, Chris is
responsible for supporting a number of
horticultural projects with community
groups, involving mainly elders from the
Asian, Irish, Afro-Caribbean and
Vietnamese/Chinese communities. Tucked
away behind the public access areas of
the garden, groups of `Heart Gardeners',
referred by their GPs, use raised beds
and polytunnels for growing organic food,
herbs and medicinal plants. This summer
the Growing for Healthy Living groups
celebrated with an open day which they
called World Village Festival.
Chumleigh
Gardens in 2002
The
approach to the gardens is not as
encouraging as it might be, since you
have to walk past the car park and
vehicle depot - but do note the
attractive exhibition, created by Art in
the Park, explaining how the council's
fleet of electric cars contribute to
environmental conservation. Look to your
left and you will see a sign written in
many community languages welcoming you to
Chumleigh. Passing through the courtyard
between the Alms Houses, past the café,
you come to a gateway opening into a
walled garden.
The
first area you encounter is the Oriental
Garden. Here a calm, still pond and rock
garden contrasts with swaying bamboo-like
foliage, and you can see tea bushes from
the mountains of India.
In the
African and Caribbean garden big leaved
plants with a tropical feel can be found,
as well as cacti and succulents from
drier regions.
The
Islamic garden is more geometric. You can
see pictured here the wonderful mosaic,
lily pond and jelly palm which forms the
centre piece of this enclosed fragment of
paradise. The local branch of MIND found
this to be an ideal setting to stage a
confidence building event for people with
mental health problems. The Asian Elders'
group are shown here meeting beneath a
palm tree.
Mediterranean
gardens need to create shade and conserve
water, so here we find vines climbing
pergolas, and herb beds of grey leafed,
drought resistant plants. I was there on
a bright but chilly Autumn day and some
of the more tender plants were lovingly
wrapped in fleece to protect them from
the northern climate.
Community
Activities
The
gardens were very quiet the day I was
there. But they will come to life on
Sunday 17th November when
people of all ages are invited to learn
how to make their own bird feeder to help
the birds survive the winter. And
December sees a return of the popular,
seasonal workshop making a wreath or
table decoration for Christmas.
Previous
workshops have focused on seasonal themes
like Spring houseplant arrangements,
willow weaving, making hanging baskets
and window boxes; in Summer making
painted pots and leaf sculptures; and an
Autumn seed collecting walk in the park.
These activities prove very useful to
local people who often have only small
gardens or balconies, but are none the
less keen gardeners - especially when it
comes to growing plants which link them
to their roots, long ago and far away.
Black
History Month - previous events involving
local communities have included
- Storytelling
about plants from the Caribbean
- Plants,
people and health
- Botanic
drawing classes with Anita -
Moghul miniatures, and banners on
themes from Asia and India, with
school children
- Sugar
and Spice - history of tea,
coffee and sugar cultivation
The
Future of Chulmleigh Gardens
A
development plan exists for Burgess Park.
Ideas for the future include perimeter
boundaries, safety features and increased
staffing, but these depend on financial
constraints. Chumleigh itself is also
constrained by limited money, and the
Ranger service is kept extremely active.
Still, Chris has various projects in the
pipeline.
Volunteers
are welcome to input ideas about making
the approach to Chumleigh Multicultural
Gardens more accessible.
Although
the gardens are very beautiful just to
look at, Chris told me that she tries to
get beyond the visual aesthetic of
plants, to get at the meanings they hold
for people. Hence the idea of inviting
ethnic communities to contribute to a
series of temporary labelled trails.
Chris would welcome support with
fundraising to make this project happen.
A video
or CD Rom will shortly be produced, of
old fashioned varieties of food, herb and
medicinal plant growing - in different
languages - available in 2003. BEN
supported an application for funding for
this project from the SEED programme
(lottery partners) via RSNC (Royal
Society for Nature Conservation).
Conclusion
Chumleigh
Multicultural Gardens visitor's book is
full of positive remarks from many
different people, who come from far and
wide to enjoy this little known beauty
spot in South London. Comments in
English, Welsh, French, Portuguese - and
children's drawings - can be seen among
the autographs of celebrities and
dignitaries. But the entry which most
moved me spoke of “great memories of
my own environment in another time,
another place”. This captures
beautifully the ethos of the garden,
which Park Ranger Chris Wildhaber has
worked so hard to cultivate.
click here if
you would like to download a copy of this
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