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Open Garden Squares Weekend
Seize the chance to visit London’s secret green spaces as private squares, rooftops and terraces are thrown open to the public
If the warmer weather has you feeling green-fingered, get some horticultural inspiration from the Open Garden Squares Weekend, running from 17-18 June. Now in its 20th year, the event opens the gates of some of the best leafy spots around London.
Squares have long been one of the defining features of the capital and are woven into its architectural fabric, so much so that the London Squares Act of 1931 was introduced to help protect these vital centres for community living. During the weekend around 200 across the city will be accessible to all, representing a diverse mix of private gardens and traditional squares, alongside unconventional leafy retreats across barges, museums, schools and allotments.
A number of the most eye-catching examples are on rooftops, which not only offer some of the best flora and fauna but breathtaking views across the city too. Two new additions this year sit atop buildings belonging to Hachette UK in Blackfriars and Baring Asset Management in the City, with the latter featuring terraces that take inspiration from Asia and Europe. They join other popular destinations including Roof East in Stratford, which features planters made from vintage sports cars and recycled decking from the nearby Olympic Park, and the garden that sits atop the Canary Wharf Crossrail station, which will play host to a programme of special events over the weekend.
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To take a step back into history, head to the majestic Earl's Court Square, with its award-winning Victorian garden flanked by grand stucco-fronted terraces, or the Ladbroke Square Garden in Notting Hill Gate, formerly the site of the Hippodrome racecourse and now home to one of the largest private squares in London. One of the more secluded spots to escape to is The Master's Garden – set in the vicarage associated with Temple Church, it is built above 17th-century catacombs created to provide more burial space when the crypts within the church were full.
It's also worth taking a trip east to St Mary's Secret Garden tucked away in Hackney. A community space that offers horticultural therapy and training for people with mental-health issues and other disabilities, it is home to a sensory area, a woodland with working honey beehives and a small orchard.
Open Garden Squares Weekend takes place in locations across London 17 and 18 June, weekend tickets from £13; opensquares.org
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