Wansteadium

The guerrilla in our midst, Marian Temple, writes:

“After four working parties, all those manky bits of sad soil where shrubs had died over time have been tidied up and either planted or sown with wild flower seeds. It was really fun to do and for me to meet people I didn’t know, all of us happy to do our bit for Wanstead which is such a brilliant place to live. The kids were marvellous at raking out bottles and cans and we ended up with sacks of recyclables and stuff for the green collection.

“Keep your eyes open next month for glorious old fashioned scarlet geraniums flowering on the outside patches where the cars turn towards St Mary’s Avenue. Another car patch, where the traffic builds up waiting for the lights, has been planted with teazles and wild flower seeds. That nice little semi shade patch, the last on the right going towards Mansfield Road has been planted with foxgloves and primroses and no doubt I’ll keep planting as I come across excess Corner House stuff that would be happy there.

“Just one small patch remains to be done and that’s being saved for a little girl who didn’t make the work parties but is desperate to make her mark. That bit has her name on and will be done in time.

So what about the future?
“Ah, there’s a question. Maintenance is the name of the game. Hopefully, everybody who took part will keep an eye on the Wanstead Station surrounds having taken a sort of possession of it by their efforts. Maybe every so often, I’ll use Wansteadium to gather forces for a general weed and tidy up as needed.

“Re. the thorny question of litter, (amazing subject, everybody thinks it’s everybody else’s job to deal with it!). The important thing there is to prevent a build-up. Cans and bottles lying around indicate that this is an ok place to drop ‘em. The trick is to get rid of them. It’s no shame, (quite the opposite in fact) to remove rubbish and put it in the bin. An immediate improvement and it gets rid of the subliminal message that this flower bed or bit of pavement is just right for the can I don’t need any more.

“Thanks to all those who took part. A good time had by all. Watch this space for future call ups and enjoy the fruits of your labour. Just hope to goodness that the seeds germinate!”

PS. Wansteadium reader Bente Dahl adds that Wanstead Station is not the only one getting the gardening love.

Bravo to those Wanstead souls who have signed up to look after their local tree pit – the bit of soil at the base of street trees. Signs have appeared on trees all over Snaresbrook ward and more widely asking council weed-spraying folk to avoid those trees which are being looked after. The plan, if you need reminding, is that seeds will be planted in these pits with the aim of encouraging bees to find their way along our streets.

At least one bee-like being is already making its home in a pit on Grosvenor Road, as pictured above.

It’s a novel scheme, backed by Redbridge, Wanstead Friends of the Earth, and an Olympic Legacy Grant. If you’re taking part, you can send your photos of tree pits before and after at info@wansteadium.com. Keep in touch via the BEES BEES BEES link at the top of this page.

The mystery of what’s happened to the Wanstead Village signpost at the Snaresbrook end of the High Street remains unsolved. On Wanstead Talk, our messageboard, the theory that it might have been in collision with a construction lorry (a traditional newspaper phrase which carefully avoids blame) was put forward. If you know what happened, or where it is, please tell us. It’s a funny little sign, really, but it’s all we’ve got. Apart from the other one.

Wansteadium’s property blogger, George C Parker, writes:

Gracious readers, Spring has arrived and the local property market continues to blossom. Increasingly I note that properties in this area are listed ‘sale by tender’. These three words are estate agent catnip – usually meaning that sealed bids are invited to avoid underpricing in a seller’s market.

An example is this handsome 5-bedder on Grove Park for which bids of around £1.3m are invited.

On offer are a very generous living area, and a mature, leafy garden-cum-cricket square in an excellent location. However, the successful bidder may choose to dispense with the rather trendy Dalston beard on the lower front bay window.

Alternatively, for those who would like yet another bedroom, plus walking access to stables, this Empress Avenue house is on the market with Churchills for a more transparent 900k.

Narnia in Aldersbrook

I needed a double-take when I spied this Martin and Co advert on Zoopla this morning. Were these Queenswood Gardens apartments truly “Built in wardrobes” like the fabled kingdom of C.S.Lewis? Perhaps when the Flats are snowy in winter, the residents might see a resemblance.

The comparison does pall somewhat when we remember that Narnia had a splendidly elegant lamp post. In contrast Redbridge appears to pride itself on finding the ugliest and ill-matched collection of street illumination outside of a war zone.

Returning to the property in question: with off-street parking, and directly on the 101 bus route to either Wanstead tube or Manor Park station, the price does begin to look extremely competitive (yes I did spot the reference to a June 2013 open day which I presume is a typo).

You’d probably get an even better view of Narnia might be afforded by this 5th floor residence in the little-known Belgrave Heights development.

Two wheels good

As anywhere in London, the ever-increasing number of new apartment buildings appears to be increasing the strain on infrastructure and services. Wansteadium has carried a number of articles on the increasing pressure on parking around homes, schools, and the High Street, and the difficulty in striking a happy medium.

Fundamentally there are too many short car journeys, yet Wanstead remains a truly wretched place to run a bicycle, not least for school kids who should be using their young legs rather than bouncing about in the back of cars.

I’m adding my two penny-farthings to this matter because there is solid evidence to suggest environmental, commercial and public health benefits to improving cycle access and storage facilities.

Thanks to Heather Whitney who posted an interesting article to the Wansteadium Facebook page recently.

Remember that local elections are coming up, so now is a good time to mention this and other issues (the state of Christchurch play area?) to your candidates as they attempt to canvass your endorsement. Like an estate agent: they work for you.

Last month Wansteadium wondered if the seemingly brutal pruning of the fine London plane trees on Wanstead High Street, which leaves them bereft of leaves and indeed branches, was being done at the right time of year.

After all, it’s one thing to know that a tree species responds well to this rather severe pruning (or pollarding, as it’s called). But it’s another thing for that pollarding to take place in the middle of the growing season. Isn’t that a bit like closing Selfridges for redecoration in the middle of December?

We asked Redbridge Council for a statement of their policy towards pollarding. It turns out we were right – this is NOT the time of year for pollarding to take place. The council told us: “There are 1,611 Highway trees that are maintained as pollards. This year work was scheduled to pollard 866 of these trees between January and March. Due to emergency tree works resulting from the high winds experienced since October 2013, the routine programme could not start until the middle of January.”

However, this is not necessarily a disaster. The council’s tree experts say that the planes on Wanstead High Street are “robust”, and “should soon produce vigorous new growth”.

So, readers of Wansteadium, please be like Norman Lamont and keep an eye out for green shoots of recovery.

Congratulations to Wanstead’s Nick Drew, managing director of visual special effects company Milk, which this week won a Bafta for its work on the Doctor Who 50th special episode, The Day of the Doctor.

Nick and his colleagues set the company up last June, and the BBC commission was its first job. There’s a taste of it below.