THE STORY OF MEANWHILE GARDENS

A community garden built on former derelict land in 1976

Home to the Metronomes Steel Pan Orchestra since 1989

Aswad’s Live and Direct concert/album recorded at Meanwhile Gardens

Over 50 different species of trees.

Kensington & Chelsea MIND Wildlife Garden Project


Jamie McCollough the artist, engineer and visionary struggled to get all the permissions, paperwork and money to transform this derelict, fenced-in land into a garden for the whole community. Grudgingly, the council – the owner – said that they had no current plans for the plot. This was 1976, the year of our bail-out from the IMF, of black-outs, of rising inflation and unemployment. It was a period of national hopelessness, and the area around Meanwhile was, as it is today, one of the poorest in the country. The council said that they might want to do something with the land in the future, but meanwhile, Jamie might as well go ahead. He brought people around a common vision. They worked to transform something derelict into something cherished and called it “Meanwhile Gardens”

Part of my Garden Collection
Meanwhile in Meanwhile.
#MeanwhileGardens was my daily dawn walk during spring 2020 #Lockdown1 It is the nearest green space to where I live and is also a mental health garden cared for by Scope. Most plants and trees are also labelled with their name. The paisley pattern is made from an oak leaf surrounded by spring hawthorn flowers. Other herbs and flowers pictured on the scarves are #Alkanet #WildGarlic #SolomonsSeal #Nettle #Periwinkle

It is located at the foot of #ErnoGoldfinger’s #TrellickTower
#TheClash at nearby #AcklamHall #BoxingDay #1979 #redgreenandgold

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