Help rebuild the meadow - Saturday May 10 seed-sowing day

At the end of last year, Mabley Meadow was buried under a 49-tonne pile of flytipped rubbish. But then something amazing happened - the daffodils bloomed anyway, and the bluebells are peeping out of the grass. So the meadow won't be beaten - and neither will we!

Join us on Saturday 10 May, from 11am-1pm for a meadow seed-sowing extravaganza, and show those flytippers they can't keep us down.

On the day we'll pick up the small amount of rubbish that was missed in the clean up (so if you have a pair of gardening gloves, bring them along). Then when the meadow's spic and span again, we'll sow a new batch of wildflower seeds then get ready for incredible summer. See you there!

Flytipping disaster!

If you've been past the meadow recently, or seen some of the many media reports, you'll have noticed that our community park has gone from this:

 To this:

(Image from ITV)

Illegal flytippers have dumped a whopping 49 tonnes of rubbish on Mabley Meadow, destroying the small orchard and edible herb area, and potentially killing all the bluebells and daffodils we've worked so hard to plant.

So this is a terrible day for everyone who's volunteered, joined the gardening-club and enjoyed using the meadow. But there's good news here too.

Hackney Council have already started the clear up, so it'll look much better soon. And some of our plantings are gone forever, some will come back fighting. So stay tuned for spring.

Best of all though has been the amazing support that's flooded in from people all over Hackney. Adversity really has brought us together, and proved how important and loved the meadow is. So thank you to everyone who's had a kind word to say or made an offer of help.

For now, we have to leave it to the council to get the site clear. But in spring, we'll do a seed sowing and get our meadow back. And in 2014, it'll be better than ever!

If you go down to the meadow today...

You're in for a nice surprise. It's looking incredible!

The thick grass is a haven for butterflies, birds and insects - and perfect for a picnic.

Look closely and you'll see native bluebells all over the meadow - so all our had work planting bulbs is paying off!

The wild herbs planted by the gardening club last summer are thriving - and the fruit trees love their new home.

Look closely, and you'll find wild garlic growing in the long grass.

Currants! These will be delicious in a couple of months.

Unlike lawns, in a meadow, the more dandelions the better - bees love them, and they look amazing en masse.

Come take a stroll down our flower-lined paths, then take a seat on our hand-carved bench and enjoy a bit of wild London!

June flowers (and bugs)

One of the main reasons for making the meadow was to create a haven for animals and insects (especially the rare ones). And after a couple of years of planting and caring for the space, we've got more wildlife than ever before! Here's some of what you might find if you keep your eyes peeled.

A Rose Chafer beetle eating pollen on a Camissia flower. These beetles are said to be in decline in the UK, so we're really lucky they've picked the meadow for their new home.

Summer flowers blooming! We've not had buttercups on the meadow in a while, so it's great that they're making a comeback.

Bumblebee on a Camissia flower. With the wet and cold weather, our native bees have been having a hard time this year - except in the meadow where they've been busy eating nectar since April!

This might be a Mint Moth (if you're an expert, feel free to  make a correction!). They like living in meadows, so it'd make sense that they'd be in abundance around Mabley. This year, there are a more butterflies on the meadow than ever before, which is fantastic news.

Ox-eye Daisies blooming by the road. A nice sight for drivers, and the perfect landing pad for butterflies too.

Gardening for birds

At our last gardening club (on Saturday 19), our local gardening expert Helen Wilson was teaching everyone about the species that birds love - and how to plant them. It was a great success, so thanks to everyone who came along! Sadly, the camera battery died, so we don't have any pics of the day, but here's a run down of what we planted so you can keep an eye out for it next time you're there...

English Ivy (Hedera Glacier) - birds love nesting in it, and because it flowers in autumn, it's a great food source for honey bees and Red Admiral butterflies too.

Native Honeysuckle (Lonicera Periclymenum) - honeysuckle attracts lots of insects that birds like to eat. It's especially good for Bluetits as well, because they can nest in the dense bits.

Winter-Flowering Honeysuckle (Lonicera Fragantissima) - perfect for birds to make their nests in, and good for attracting insects (in case the birds need an autumn snack).

Our next gardening club session on Saturday 26 May will be for the butterflies! And we'll be planting native bluebells too to help save them from extinction. So join us on the meadow on Saturday from 12pm-2pm - free drinks and snacks will be provided. See you then!

Summer's coming...

And it's going to be amazing!

Star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum) peeping through this year's crop of wildflowers.

Blues and whites - perfect for our local bees.

A spring bee stocking up on nectar from a White Deadnettle (Lamium album)

Camissia flowers from last years' bulb planting.

May flowers

They say April showers bring May flowers. But torrential rain in May brings these little beauties! The meadow's just gearing up for summer so keep checking back because these spring flowers will be in bloom soon.

A future field of blooms!

Dandelions aren't every gardener's cup of tea, but the bees love them - and so to us wildflower gardeners.

Cow Parsley, thriving among the long grass.

A native bluebell! There aren't loads of these growing (sadly), but if you look carefully, you'll see a few among the grass.

Bulbs and wildflowers getting ready to bloom.

Down the garden path...

Even if Londoners haven't been enjoying all the rain we've been having recently, the meadow's been loving it! With the grass getting long and super-green, the parks team from Hackney Council swung by with a mower to cut some paths through it. We think they look AMAZING, but what do you think? Do you like them? And are there any other paths you'd like mown on the meadow? Just leave a comment or email mableymeadow@gmail.com

Palas por Pistolas - update

You might remember that way back in 2010, we were lucky enough to be paid a visit by Mexican artist Pedro Reyes - who's been planting trees all over the world as part of his incredible Palas por Pistolas project.

The walnut tree we planted with him is settling into Mabley Green nicely, and now Pedro has listed all the trees on his new project website. Check it out here, and take a look at Mabley Green's tree here.