Cult of the guerrilla gardener grows

6:56am Friday 13th October 2006

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GUERRILLA gardening returned to Stratford last week.

Richard Reynolds, 29, is among a growing cult of green-fingered horticulturalists who stealthily tidy up neglected public spaces by night.

In May, Mr Reynolds and his band of guerrillas found a neglected flower bed in Vicarage Lane and cleared it up.

Crowds of people watched and some joined in as the gardeners weeded the bed, covered it with shingle and planted trees and shrubs.

Last Thursday, Mr Reynolds returned to the site expecting another hard night's work, but he was surprised to find that other gardeners had been in action.

Mr Reynolds, 29, said: "It's more or less the same. I was really nervous about coming back. I was expecting the story to be a miserable one.

"I am amazed by how free of weed it is, I am really encouraged, I guess that some people have been looking after this. There is no way it has been left to nature."

Mr Reynolds started guerrilla gardening when he moved to Elephant and Castle a couple of years ago.

He said: "I moved to a flat that had no garden or even a windowsill. I spotted a concrete planter and decided to make that my garden.

"I could have gone through all the red tape and got permission but I just decided to go ahead and do it. Sometimes actions speak louder than words."

Soon, Mr Reynolds started spotting other sites that needed gardening and he built a website that has since grown in to a community of hardcore gardeners.

He said: "Many of them don't have enough room to have their own garden but really enjoy gardening.

"We are always looking to expand and find new places to guerrilla garden, it's quite territorial."

Mr Reynolds' exploits have got him into a few scrapes.

He said: "The police have asked what I am doing a few times.

"On one occasion I was reported because somebody thought I was stealing plants, another time I was suspected of making fertiliser bombs and I was questioned under the Prevention of Terrorism Act."

Mr Reynolds said that despite the fact that what he does is technically vandalism, most people are pleased by the results of the gardeners' actions.

He said: "It lifts people's spirits if they live in a well-kept environment. It is satisfying to make areas better.

"We were gravelling near a residential block once and people came out and gave us choc ices, so I think they appreciate what we are doing."