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Oaks and hornbeams make a return in Whitfield Gardens and Crabtree Fields
“By the time London was first colonised by people, it would have been covered by oak and hornbeam woodland,” says the London Wildlife Trust. Yet there are no oaks or hornbeams in Fitzrovia’s public open spaces… until this month. Now the Friends have planted saplings of English oak and hornbeam along with other native trees […]
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Grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) in Whitfield Gardens
Spotted around 8am this morning in Whitfield Gardens was this grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). Maybe not seen before in Whitfield Gardens but many have been spotted in Fitzroy Square to the north.
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Native hedge planting in Whitfield Gardens and Crabtree Fields
This month volunteers from the Friends group have been planting native hedges in Whitfield Gardens and Crabtree Fields to replace missing or damaged shrubs. In early April we planted around 50 bare root saplings: mostly blackthorn, with a mix of hawthorn, hazel, field maple, wild cherry and dog rose in two areas of Whitfield Gardens […]
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We’ve had a donation of plants for Whitfield Gardens from an allotment
Martin who works in Fitzrovia has an allotment near Heathrow has very kindly donated some plants for us. They are perennial wildflowers: betony, primrose, cowslip and wild strawberry. We’ll be putting most of these next to our native hedge which we planted this week. We’ll be holding regular community gardening sessions at Whitfield Gardens this […]
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Wildflower planting at Whitfield Gardens, Saturday 7 April 2018
Following up from our winter planting, we have been successful with an application for native wildflower seeds which Camden parks are encouraging Friends’ groups to get involved with. Come and join our planting morning this Saturday when we’ll be sowing five collections of wildflower seeds in an area of Whitfield Gardens that we’ve specially prepared.
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Meeting: Friends of Fitzrovia Parks, 6.30pm Thursday 5 April 2018
There will be a meeting of the Friends of Fitzrovia Parks at 6.30pm Thursday 5 April at Fitzrovia Neighbourhood Centre, 39 Tottenham Street, London W1T 4RX.
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We are looking forward to using our Grow Wild seed kit
We are bouncing up and down with excitement as we’ve just received in the post our Grow Wild seed kit from Kew Gardens, ready to sow native wildflowers in Whitfield Gardens. The seed kit was the result of a successful application to improve part of one of Fitzrovia’s open spaces.
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Catkins blossom on a hazel tree next to the Fitzrovia Mural at Whitfield Gardens
As we approach mid-February catkins can be seen hanging from a hazel tree on Tottenham Street next to the Fitzrovia Mural in Whitfield Gardens public open space. Hazel has both male and female flowers on the same tree, although hazel flowers must be pollinated by pollen from other hazel trees. The yellow male catkins appear […]
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It’s mid-winter… but there are signs of spring in Whitfield Gardens
The days are short and the nights are still long but there are the first signs of spring in Fitzrovia’s Whitfield Gardens. A clump of snowdrops have emerged from the cold soil and will be the first of the year’s flowers to bloom. More snowdrops will be on their way followed by daffodils and other […]
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We’ve been planting daffodils, snowdrops, and other bulbs in Whitfield Gardens
The Friends group have been planting daffodils, snowdrops, tulips, hyacinths, and other bulbs in Whitfield Gardens this December, aiming to have flowers in bloom throughout the spring.
Friends of Crabtree Fields 