Now that's the way to get the most out of a small growing space!

This week, my day job took me to The Barbican in London for the launch of a campaign by the Royal Town Planning Institute to promote ‘Planning for Tomorrow’s Environment’.

When I was at school, I don’t remember being in any lesson that discussed the town planning system. I realise that would have been a tough gig for any teacher – it is hardly a topic to leave a class of kids riveted.

But it is an important subject, no? The way our villages, towns and cities are designed and approved has a huge impact on the society that forms there. It profoundly affects how happy and healthy we are, how we go about our lives, how easy it is to form a community, Oh, and whether we have nature around us.

I arrived half an hour early because I was keen to have a walk around the rooftop gardens at The Barbican. I was interested to see if town planning had allowed all the people who live there to have nature in their lives.

Indeed, some of them gardens are quite famous having been designed by the planting guru, Nigel Dunnett, who was behind the planting at the London Olympics.

Inevitably, in mid November, the planted beds were looking tired, but you can hopefully see how much greenery there is, and remember that what looks like ground level here is actually a roof:

I could tell how, for much of the year, they must be oases of colour and plant richness for those who live there or visit. There would have been plentiful Phlomis (Jerusalem Sage), Salvias, Verbena bonariensis, Geraniums. I’m sure such excellent planting choices would be alive with common urban pollinators in the summer, and still offer plenty of cover now in late autumn.

Something else The Barbican has to shout about is that most of the balconies come with planters. And where planters are provided for resident in this way, I find that almost everyone is inspired to grow something. Almost none were empty. 

Growing things is such a critical step to connecting many people with nature.

In comparison, look at some other flats nearby that haven’t been designed to encourage planting. Lifeless. Devoid of joy.

However - and this is a big however – the range of birds I saw at The Barbican was painfully small, even in the green bits. Bar the Moorhens and Coots (which were a very welcome sight) on the large ponds in the middle, the only birds I saw on my trip were Feral Pigeons.

The reality is that the density of built structures in this area of London has largely rendered the place devoid of birdlife. There just isn’t the quality, volume and interconnectedness of greenspace to allow a rich avian diversity to thrive.

So, gardening for wildlife needs to be a mix of us all doing our bit in the green (and blue ) spaces that are afforded to us. But it also needs the planners and archtects and developers to ensure we're not living in urban deserts.

But I will leave you today with one balcony garden that I felt was inspired. The Hanging Gardens of Barbican. Now that's the way to get the most out of a small growing space and try to do your bit!