NOTES from. near and far // June outings
From a converted London laundry yard to the green fields of Glastonbury, this month's nature fixes are all about looking up.
The Up Garden, 1-4 & 5, Eric Close laundry yard, London E7 0AY
I’ve been meaning to visit Forest Gate’s newest community garden for months but haven’t had the chance. With my bike back in action, and an errand to run nearby, I finally made it down one sunny afternoon and what an accomplishment it is. Developed in an old laundry yard on Eric Close, the garden lives up to its name through a combination of colourful planting and a suitably uplifting palette of pink, orange, jade, royal blue and yellow on everything from the large mural to planters and furniture. A lot of attention to detail has gone on here to make the space welcome to all members of the community, from designated children’s play areas, toys and tools, to shaded seating around the site, to wheelchair accessible planters. Edible planting takes pride of place in the raised beds with the intention of providing a place for those who don’t have their own garden to grow their own food. There are also wildflowers and herbs providing a feast for the senses and for pollinators. It’s also open 9am to 6pm every day to anyone who would like to visit, making it the ideal place to drop in when desired. A truly inspiring initiative from Suz Hu and all involved.
Glastonbury Festival, Pilton, Somerset
Glastonbury is known for its music above all but being set across various farmers fields it’s also very much a back to nature event. It is huge but once you get the lay of the land it’s entirely possible to navigate the festival in bitesize sections, with the greener landscapes lying at the south of the site near King’s Meadow. Here can also be found the ‘megalithic’ Swan circle built in 1992 by the late Devon-born Druid king Ivan Macbeth. Working in collaboration with Glastonbury co-creator and dairy farmer Michael Eavis, he devised a design that would be in the shape of the star constellation Cygnus the Swan, with the major stones corresponding to the brightest stars, and the midsummer sun rising over the swan’s head. I didn’t do the full haven’t-been-to-bed hang out at the stones this year but I did manage an early morning walk through the stones and past ancient hedgerows of hawthorn and elderflower to the Healing Fields where I tied a ribbon and made a wish for my niece Lily. There is something magical about these parts and it’s not just the festival or the crowds of like-minded revellers. It’s definitely something to do with the land, and the feeling of communing with nature. As the festival closed and I stayed on to help de-install the interstage area – close to the Glastonbury Abbey and Stonehenge ley line on which the iconic Pyramid Stage is set – the trees and grass revealed themselves once more. As nature fixes go, this is quite possibly one of the best.