Nature Strips & Gardening

The architectural design of the part of the conservation area to the  west of Craigmillar Park included five plantations of trees and bushes – one at the north end of Granby Road, two bordering the east end of Suffolk Road and one at either end of Gilmour Road, all originally enclosed by wrought iron railings.

During WW2 these railings were removed and replaced by chicken wire fencing.
It is assumed (and it would be useful to have some written evidence) that the payment for the upkeep of these plantations was included for many decades in the feu duties which existed then.

When the system of paying feus ended (Land Tenure Reform (Scotland)Act 1974), there seems to have been some confusion about who was responsible for the maintenance of the plantations, but the Green Spaces department of Edinburgh Council periodically cut back vegetation overhanging the pavement and removed dangerous tree branches.

However, these areas looked very neglected and, although some residents made sporadic attempts at litter picking and general tidying, the general impression was not good. With advice and help of Mike Shields, then head of Edinburgh Council Green Spaces, it was agreed to make a concerted effort to make a positive difference.

A chance meeting in 2016 with Sarah Sigsworth, an expert in the field, led to a Biodiversity and Conservation Report (see elsewhere), commissioned by the CPA, which detailed what was growing in each plantation and recommended changes to improve their ecology. You can read the entire report on the CPA web site.

The main comment was that there was too much laurel, impoverishing the soil and blocking sunlight, thus inhibiting the survival of ground species. Since then, many of the recommendations have been carried out, although much remains to be done.

Dilapidated fencing round two of the plantations (now known as nature strips) and many overgrown laurels have been removed and currently a small group of volunteers occasionally cut back vegetation from the pavement, remove litter and try to maintain a certain order, in a naturalistic kind of way.

Only Edinburgh Council’s Forestry Service is permitted to prune or remove trees – laurel is not considered a tree but a bush – but demand on their small force is overwhelming and only emergency removal of dangerous branches and trees is available.

More volunteers are needed to keep and eye on the strip nearest them and suggest improvements – perhaps planting native species with seasonal colour or more bulbs – and I look forward to helping them in every way.

Click here to read the Sigsworth Biodiversity Report.

Wilma Elton (Co-ordinator)