Fiery red winter asters, white mallow, purple forest cranesbill and blue maidens in the green;
in between colorful petunias, Argentine verbena and even a clump of basil: it is a blaze of color like on one of the flower paintings by Klimt or Monet, only that it is a tree border in front of an Edwardian apartment block in west London.
A resident of the upper floors has conquered the spot and lovingly cares for it.
As in German metropolises, flower islands, with which gardenless city dwellers create the illusion of naturalness, are increasingly replacing tree slices covered with asphalt or epoxy gravel in London. If the Royal Horticultural Society had their way, each of the kingdom's estimated thirty million gardeners should tear up flagstones and garden concrete and plant trees and bee-friendly plants instead. The horticultural society, founded in 1804, has just launched a major appeal with which it hopes to mobilize the “gardening army” in the fight against climate change. And, as is so often the case in this country, the nation's "greatest hour" in World War II is evoked when the entire population was called upon in the Ministry of Agriculture's "Dig for Victory" campaign toRepurposing flower beds in private gardens and public parks for growing fruits and vegetables.
Pulling flowers instead of buying them
According to a survey, only nineteen percent of UK gardeners use sustainable practices today. Forty percent still use fossil fuel gardening tools. In a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote biodiversity, the Royal Horticultural Society recommends switching to electrical energy, among other things. Every bouquet bought releases 7.9 kilograms of carbon dioxide, which is why people are encouraged to grow their own cut flowers. The downside of organic farming was recently felt by the people near a noble residence near Cirencester when the wind blew in the wrong direction and spread the stink of rotten fish and ammonia from the bio-solids used to fertilize the fields. The notice from the Royal Horticultural Society,The fact that half a million houses could be heated with the equivalent of carbon dioxide that could be saved if everyone did not buy the annual average of 190 kilos of compost produced by self-producers in the store should make the smell more bearable for some.