LEIGH: Spreading the roots of success

Southend’s winning Hampton Court Flower Show entries are spreading their victorious roots through Leigh on Sea.

Key features of the Playful Garden – which clinched a bronze award at the prestigious Royal Horticultural Society contest – are proving a big hit in the borough.

The garden was created by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council’s Parks Team with support from the playground equipment company Hags Play Ltd and the Department for Education.

It included two unique blue planters which children could crawl through to see the underground life of plants.

These are now thrilling Southend youngsters. One at Darlinghurst Primary and Nursery School in Pavilion Drive, Leigh, which is being used as part of a summer play scheme on the theme of roots and shoots.

The other is in a public area at Blenheim Primary School and Children’s Centre on Blenheim Chase, where it is enthralling children who
regularly use the centre as well as visitors.

They find the planter very inviting to climb into and find it fascinating to look through the perspex tunnel walls where they can see the growing roots of carrots, french beans, beetroot and mooli – a type of radish.

Southend-on-Sea Borough Council’s Executive Councillor for Culture, Councillor Derek Jarvis, said:

“We are very proud indeed of the success of the Playful Garden at Hampton Court and are delighted that residents and visitors are able to enjoy some of the spectacular features.

“These planters enable children to have fun while playing and discovering the secret world of plants.

“Another part of the Playful Garden, a climbing tree, is to be installed in one of the Borough’s play spaces while plants and flowers used for the exhibit have been re-homed in Southend’s parks and gardens.”

Caroline Reynolds, the Extended Services Manager at Blenheim Children’s Centre, said:

“We have developed a thriving Community Café as one of our attractions here and the planter is right next door to this for children to explore. They are thoroughly enjoying it.”

Another successful entry in the Hampton Court Flower Show was the Walled Garden exhibit, created by Southend Youth Offending Service, which won a Silver Gilt award and is now on display at the new Shoebury Youth Centre.