The mayor praises our community spirit

Our new Community Garden in the corner of Arlington Square was officially opened on 21 April.

The then Mayor of Islington, councillor Phil Kelly (right), unveiled a plaque in the Garden and told the assembled crowd of volunteers, friends and neighbours how important the borough’s green spaces are and how valuable, in the current economic climate, is volunteers’ work to conserve and improve them.

As part of the opening ceremony Valerie Hansard, co-founder of the Arlington Association and its first chair, planted a tree to celebrate the Association’s 10th anniversary, the Mayor ceremonially cut a 10th birthday cake and Councillor Martin Klute’s jazz trio helped the celebrations go with a swing.

In spite of the earlier drought and the monsoon weather that followed, the Community Garden continues to thrive. The six raised beds are overflowing with herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit trees planted by local children and gardening volunteers.

The corner has become a popular meeting place for local families. There are fun information packs by Kate Johnstone explaining the nectar-rich crops, and residents are encouraged to take snippets of herbs for their cooking. It’s hard to believe that this time last year, this corner of Arlington Square was a neglected dumping ground covered with literally tonnes of rubbish.