ALLOTMENTS & COMMUNITY GARDENS

South Kilburn Community Garden

Location: William Dunbar/William Saville House, off Albert Road, Kilburn, NW6 Facilities: Large area laid to lawn, with ornamental flower beds, childrens playground and picnic facilities. Other features include a wildlife garden with wildflower meadow and 160 sq m community growing plots with multi-cultural herb garden and fruit and vegetables grown organically.
BBE hold the lease of this URBAN/NCLB funded Community Garden officially opened by the then Lord Mayor Cllr John Lebor. Development and maintenance of the garden is managed by The Friends of the Community Garden with support from BBE.

Benefits to-date include:
· Weekly gardening sessions in which 64 volunteers have participated to-date, donating over 675 volunteer hours to assist in the maintenance and development of this site.
· Socially inclusive activities, with volunteers whose ages span 7 to 70 years and are drawn from ethnically diverse backgrounds.
· Successful community harvests in 3 successive years providing free seasonally fresh herbs, fruit and vegetables, reflecting the rich cultural diversity of the local residents and participants.
· STOP PRESS- South Kilburn Community Garden is now a member of The Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens

Birchen Grove Allotments

Location: Plots 31-33 Birchen Grove Allotments, off Blackbird Hill, NW9 Facilities: 415 sq m of allotment with Polytunnel, and horticultural training facilities currently under development. BBE are actively working with Willow Housing Association to create a horticultural training facility demonstrating organic methods for the benefit of elderly and disabled clients.

Features include:
· Disabled access design, with raised beds and wide footpaths for wheelchair users
· Polytunnel in which to raise plants and grow vegetables, and indoor classroom facility
· Fruit garden with a range of soft fruits and fruit trees
· Crop rotation beds
· Intensive food growing methods
· Composting system (under development) with "green manures"
· Patio garden demonstrating food growing in small urban spaces (planned for summer 2003)

Dog Lane Allotments

Location: Plot 53 Dog Lane Allotments, off Woodheyes Road, Church End, NW10 In association with Cricklewood Homeless Concern this 231 sq m site will be developed as an innovative organic social enterprise for the homeless to feed the homeless. Weekly drop-in gardening sessions are held with "hands on learning"

Features include:
· Indoor classroom facility
· Patio herb garden
· Soft fruit garden
· Crop rotation beds
· Growing in confined spaces: demonstrating vertical gardening, edible ornamental borders and intensive food growing methods

NRF Greener Gardens Project

BBE has developed a neighbourhood renewal regeneration project that aims to revitilise the outlook of urban housing estates whilst providing the residents with beautiful private places. The methods used are environmentally friendly by using low VOC preservatives, peat free compost and wildlife friendly plants etc. Please view the presentation to see the first year of
operations results.

NRF Greener Gardens Project