OOTS: News Round Up

Town square planters in Litomysl, Czech Republic. I was quite taken with the use of Solanum laxum 'Album' * to contrast with the red geraniums

In local news, our newspaper's finally cottoned on to the plight of our conker trees, something I've reported on over the past couple of years (here and here, the latter also having some positive news to report). They've also noted Chippenham's new flower bed, which is marking the centenary of voluntary work by the British Red Cross. I really must go and check this one out as it's described as a rose garden, but it looks suspiciously like begonias to me**.

Some local news making the national papers was a pensioner's penchant for brightening up Wilton with hanging baskets being cited as a safety hazard. Elsewhere BBC News reported on the battle for Berlin's gardens and Chicago's Daily Herald found a local electricity company is threatening to pull the plug on Des Moines' community gardens. On the other hand, The Guardian reported on how we're reclaiming pockets of land left by developers to provide new public space. The same paper has also launched Piece by Piece: a campaign to preserve our remaining open spaces. At Garden Rant, they've been wondering how schools' open spaces could be better utilised both aesthetically and educationally.

In Sydney, a derelict waterworks has been transformed into a new public park and Horticulture Week reported on why we need to invest in our public spaces. They also unveiled details of the open spaces planned for the 2012 Olympics athletes' village. And whilst we're at it here's a view of the first wildflowers already blooming at the 2012 Olympic Park.

I've also found a couple of cracking new blogs: Tim Austen gives his perspective as a Landscape Architect in Ireland. In this post he argues that developments mothballed as a result of the economic downturn can still be vibrant public space in the interim. This also has resonance here in the UK. The other blog I've found is dedicated to The High Line in New York. The link I've provided is to their original blog which is a useful resource in itself, which in turn points you to their new blog and website which has lots more information going forward.

And finally, the Hanging Baskets of Babbington have been named as one of the Seven Wonders of Swindon ;)

* = yet another plant to have a name change, I typed Solanum jasminoides 'Album' first, then found its new name when I tried to find a suitable link

** = even NAH without any prompting said: Aren't those Begonias?

Comments

  1. Esther Montgomery8 September 2010 at 13:43

    I very much like the shape of those pots. Hope they don't slide down the hill and break though.

    I hope it's helpful rather than annoying to mention it - but I find the red links hard to read on the brown background . . . I may be the only one but, just in case . .

    Esther

    ReplyDelete
  2. petoskystone8 September 2010 at 14:58

    how sad the plight of berlin's allotments! 'property developers' is an oxymoron. kudos to AH!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lu8 September 2010 at 22:54

    thank you for showing me the seven wonders of swindon - I don't know how I have missed them all these years. Remarkable baskets!

    they are definitely begonias. I hope they didn't pay for roses.

    ReplyDelete
  4. VP20 September 2010 at 15:02

    Esther - the pots are fine, it's just the crazy angle I chose for the photo. Thanks for the feedback re the clarity of the links. I'll see what I can do...

    Petoskystone - sadly the plight of Bedrlin is all too common elsewhere :(

    Lu - they're wondrous indeed aren't they ;) For some strange reason I have the tune 'I never promised you a rose garden' playing in my head...

    ReplyDelete

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