South Lakeland 'guerilla gardeners' sow the seed of debate (From The Westmorland Gazette)

South Lakeland 'guerilla gardeners' sow the seed of debate

8:40am Thursday 2nd September 2010 in

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‘GUERRILLA gardeners’ are forcing councillors to rethink the way public land is used.

At least 40 gardeners are planting fruit, vegetables and herbs on disused sites in Windermere, Kendal, and Staveley to spruce them up and grow produce for their communities.

But their efforts have divided opinion at South Lakeland District Council, with one lawyer warning the ‘guerrillas’ were trespassing.

Morag Leiper, who helped transform a patch of Beresford Gardens in Windermere, said they were improving unused land.

She and other group members also helped plant out seven concrete containers at Waterside in Kendal.

The group began planting in June and now want more people to join them.

They had operated early in the morning or late at night to keep their activities secret but as more people became interested they began gardening in the day.

In Windermere, 14 gardeners have planted rhubarb, rosemary, fennel, and spring onions to use despite not having permission to do so.

“We’re now doing this to test people’s reactions,” said Miss Leiper.

Kathy Collins and her son Jackson, three, regularly stop to weed and check on the plants at the garden.

She said: “We’re doing more with that land than what would have normally been done and I can’t see how people could object to it.”

Coun Hilary Stephenson, communities portfolio holder with SLDC, said: “I wouldn’t like to be seen endorsing somebody doing anything illegal but the other issue that we are being told increasingly is that we have to respond to what people want.

“I think it should be encouraged.”

But Matthew Neal, solicitor to SLDC, said that the gardeners were trespassing.

He said: “If people get injured then there could be issues for us.

"If people want an allotment they should apply to the waiting list.”

Guerilla gardening

Guerrilla gardening can be traced back to New York in 1973 Centuries before, in 1649, a group called ‘The Diggers’ planted beans and barley on public land in Surrey without permission.

The guerrilla gardening community in Britain began to flourish in 2004.

In 2008, a book, On Guerrilla Gardening, was published by Richard Reynolds.

Guerrilla gardening has spread to more than 30 countries.