In August I mentioned the stunning wildflowers planted in Fog Lane Park (see here). I would have expected them to have disappeared by now and to be a pile of rotting vegetation, but no, they continue to shine.
The person who designed the mix of seeds is obviously very clever. While the summer poppies have died down, now in autumn the black-eyed susans have taken over to give a beautiful yellow display.
I think the seeds may have come from a company called 'Pictorial Meadows'. It was founded by Professor Nigel Dunnett and is part owned by the University of Sheffield. These were the people responsible for the famous planting schemes around the Olympic Park.
And yet, they will eventually fade into memory. This is probably an annual mix of flowers designed to last one year. If any self seed next year they will be dominated by the more vigorous native weeds.
It's worth remembering that however natural and easy this mass of flowers looks, it is really an artificial construction as ordered and planned as the 20th century rose garden it replaced.
Interesting point to ponder: what is the difference between the eras, where one admires roses and the other cornflowers?
I've enjoyed the cheeky conceit of sowing unruly, untidy plants in formal rectangular beds within an urban park, but unfortunately the effect is just a temporary dream.
Talking of which, what of the nuts planted in November last year? (post about them here) Have they produced a harvest for the local people?
No. They are still sticks.
Intriguingly, someone has removed the plastic sleeves from some of the sticks - and then dumped them. I wonder if the motive was horticultural or aesthetic. Either way leaving the plastic in a pile reveals someone of very little brain.
