Resilience refers to the ability of environments and communities to react to change in a way that enables them to continue to thrive. How we create flourishing and resilient environments and communities is a pertinent question for our times.

This series of walks, talks and workshops encourages us to consider this question, by looking at nature and food growing in new and unique ways. Roy Vickery encourages us to re-think the uses of plants we dismiss as weeds. Tanya Moulding shows us how to make botanical scents, Connor Butler uses the lens of queer ecology to challenge what we think of as ‘natural’ while poet Edward Adonteng considers the spirituality of gardens. Stay tuned for more exciting speakers to be confirmed!

Here are the events in more detail:

Give it a Grow by Martha Swales – Wednesday 18th May, 6.30pm

In her first book, Give it a Grow, Martha makes it easier than ever before to start growing your own slice of nature with her collection of fool-proof projects. Join us on Wednesday 28th May from 6:30pm for the launch event of our Summer Series when Martha will be bringing some of these projects to life in a ‘garden-along’event at Barnes Common. She will be sharing some of her favourite projects to help you make the most of your garden, patio or balcony, from growing garlic greens to building your own mini-pond. Why not come and give it a grow? Book your free space on Eventbrite.

Botanical Scents Workshop by Tanya Moulding – Wednesday 11th June, 6.30pm

Come and discover the origins of perfumery and the remarkable role of aromatic plants and their oils in this immersive short workshop with Tanya Moulding, aka The Perfume Mistress. Enjoy a hands-on, interactive session embracing the theory and creative art of botanical perfumery. Book your free space on Eventbrite.

Walk: Wonderful Weeds by Roy Vickery – Wednesday 2nd July, 6.30pm 

Come along on the Wonderful Weeds walk, a stroll introducing the uses and folklore of wild plants. Our walk will be led by Roy Vickery, who worked at the Natural History Museum for many years, and collects and writes on the folklore of British and Irish plants. We imagine ourselves to be back in the 1920s, before the NHS and when people used wild plants for medicine, food, pastimes and much more. Book your free space on Eventbrite.

Walk: The Birds and the Bees: Queer Ecology of Barnes Common by Connor Butler – Wednesday 16th July, 6.30pm 

Did you know that scientists often struggle to find male woodlice, that male trees can turn female, or that many of London’s birds partner up into same-sex couples? ‘Queer Ecology’ aims to challenge what we think of as being ‘natural’ or ‘unnatural’ and celebrates diversity in all life. Join ecologist Connor Butler on a guided nature walk through Barnes Common to explore the diverse and unusual lifecycles found in the ‘unnatural’ plants and animals right outside your doorstep. Book your free space on Eventbrite.

Spirituality and Gardens – Talk by Edward Adonteng – Saturday 26th July, 11am

Growing, for many, is considered a form of stewardship to/for the Earth. In the epoch of the Anthropocene, how are our spirits impacted?  Should we consider our gardens, big or small – as places of worship that deserve more protection? Edward Adonteng is an essayist, poet, artist, gardener and academic from South London. He credits himself as a bridge builder, facilitating discourses on several themes and creating platforms for people to thrive and fully exercise their ingenuity. His attitude around growing is simple – to grow is to be human. Book your free space on Eventbrite.