Our dedicated volunteers gathered at the Japanese Garden of Peace in Hammersmith Park, continuing our mission to manage the overgrown bamboo. We've made again significant progress, 7 ton-bags full of cuttings worth of it, but the bamboo's rampant growth after years of neglect means we’ll need to keep working on it next month.
Focused Bamboo Action
In this session, we zeroed in on the bamboo next to the entrance and in the corner at the back of the streams. These areas required urgent attention to ensure the Garden remains both beautiful and accessible. You can see the difference in the before & after pictures above, and we encourage you to drop in and see it for yourself, as pictures don't do justice!
Looking more closely:
On the Frithville Entrance: We successfully thinned out the bamboo next to the south gate, removing low foliage to showcase the beautiful canes and allow more light to filter through. If you happen to be at the Garden in early morning or late afternoon, take a moment to stop and look at the light dancing through - it's quite a show!
In The Secret Hideout: The southeast corner of the Garden hosts a little "bamboo secret hideout" that got so dense that represented a problem. We started working on it last month and we've made some significant progress on it, especially on the front side facing the main part of the Garden. We also removed some other overgrown and invasive plants around the hideout, while we were at it! There's more work to be done at the back and we'll try to finish it off next month.
Preventing (almost all) re-growth: Bamboo is quite resilient and grows back aggressively. To ensure the hard work we've done in the last session doesn't go to waste, we've done a quick pass to cut almost all the new shoots and stop them from becoming a problem again. We've left a few behind where they were properly positioned to help thicken specific areas that got patchy after removing all the dead and yellow canes.
Not just bamboo, after all: warmer weather means all plants are enjoying great growth spurts, which is great to see. However, we spent a bit of time removing some invasive and badly positioned plants both around and in the streams to help get a slightly cleaner look.
We had planned to resume some pond cleaning, but the water level was so high that it would have not been safe for our Volunteers to enter it - hopefully, we'll get a chance next month and while we were there we helped deal with some of the water overflowing onto a path.
One great highlight of this session was that we were, for the first time, joined by a gardener trained in Japan. His expertise was invaluable, and we all learned a few tricks from him throughout the day. It was a fantastic learning experience for everyone involved!
Looking Ahead
Our work with the bamboo is ongoing, and we’re committed to continuing our efforts in the coming months. Each session brings us closer to fully revitalizing the garden and maintaining its beauty for all to enjoy.
As always, a big thank you to all the volunteers who participated in this session. Your efforts are making a real difference, and we look forward to seeing you next month as we continue our work in the Japanese Garden of Peace.
Stay tuned for more updates and join us in preserving this beautiful part of Hammersmith Park!
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