Dalston Eastern Curve Garden

🌳 The Dalston Eastern Curve Garden

The Dalston Eastern Curve Garden offers a vital public green space. It sits in a very built-up part of London. Indeed, this free neighborhood garden opens every day. It remains open all twelve months of the year. The garden provides an oasis of plants in the city. It connects people to nature and provides a community gathering spot. This dynamic part of Hackney benefits greatly.

💖 Community Benefits and Engagement

The Garden deeply embeds within our community. It provides social, economic, and health benefits. It supports all local people. First, extensive volunteering helps year-round. A programme of activities breaks down engagement barriers. These efforts combat social isolation. Thus, the Garden brings neighbors and residents together.

🏙️ The Need for Green Space

Hackney is London’s third most densely populated borough. Specifically, Dalston is one of its most populated areas. Most residents live in flats. Therefore, few people have their own garden access.

The Garden began in 2010. It used the old Eastern Curve railway line. This emerged from a flagship partnership project. Design for London commissioned “Making Space in Dalston.” The project brought together Hackney Council and residents. Local groups, muf architect/art, and J&L Gibbons also joined. Together, they addressed Dalston’s lack of quality public space.

An architectural collective, Exyzt, built our beautiful wooden pavilion. This structure houses our cafe kiosk. It also offers comfortable seating. We also have a pizza oven here. Furthermore, the Pineapple House serves as our conservatory greenhouse. We use it for various workshops.

☕ Management and Funding

The Garden became a social enterprise in 2012. Our social mission is simple. We offer beautiful green space for everyone. We serve a built-up area lacking greenery. Our cafe provides the enterprise income. We sell hot drinks, cakes, and homemade soup. We also offer bread, wine, and beers. Crucially, all cafe proceeds fund the Garden’s operation. This also pays for our year-round education programme. The money supports all our community events. A team of employees cares for the Garden. Many hardworking volunteers support them. They look after the plants and the people.

🌻 Planting and Wildlife

We planted the Garden in 2010. We chose wildlife-friendly trees and shrubs. These included hazel, hawthorn, and birch. Butterfly bushes and bracken were already growing. Six large raised beds were installed. Initially, we used these beds for growing food. Since then, we have added many more planters. These new beds grow more herbs and vegetables. Consequently, more flowers and plants attract bees and butterflies. We plant in every available corner to support wildlife.

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