Lambeth Walk Bee Road Meadow Announcement
Roots and Shoots is excited to announce the development of an area of Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green into a wildflower meadow to create enjoyable green space and expand wildlife habitat in the local area. The area will be one of Lambeth’s Bee Roads, the council’s initiative to enhance street-side green spaces for both wildlife and people.
Roots and Shoots’ site directly neighbours Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green, and we have managed part of it - nick-named the “Bubble Gate Garden” - for over 20 years, with the space developed into an orchard, community garden and wildlife haven by our horticulture students and staff with the help of local people. The Bubble Gate Garden has been designated by the London Wildlife Trust as a Borough Site of Importance for Nature Conservation, and with this new area we aim to create more enriched space for wildlife and a corridor to other enriched green spaces across Lambeth and South London.
All of Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green is public, and an important part of this project is to create a beautiful green space filled with flowers for local people to enjoy. The Bubble Gate Garden was used extensively by the local community and particularly by families during the covid-19 pandemic, when we all realised how essential gardens are for us all.
“It’s paradise here, isn’t it?”
Locals, overheard in the Bubble Gate Garden in 2020
The newly developed site will feature over 20 species of colourful native wildflowers including poppies, cornflowers and daisies, providing a beautiful space for local people and food for pollinating insects. The mixed native hedgerow will mature into food and habitat for birds, with flowers in spring and lots of berries in autumn.
The space has been prepared and planted across March and April, and the area will be roped off for several months while the meadow flower seed grows. The area will be opened again for public use this summer, with a path through the site so local people can walk amongst it.
Stay tuned for updates as the space grows!