Northcote Nature Reserve is a fantastic example of community action. It was an old recreation ground that had fallen into neglect and disuse. But after nearly 10 years of hard work and sheer dogged determination, it has been transformed by local residents and the ‘Friends of Northcote Nature Reserve’ group, into an amazing sanctuary for plants and wildlife. It includes a tidal inlet from the River Crane which serves as a sheltering spot for fish at times of flood tides.
December
The reserve changes massively in character over the seasons. I visited in December and it looked like mainly ground cover, with a sparkling layer of frost.
April
By April the ‘ground cover’ was all growing upwards and flowers beginning to appear, including one of my favourites, white comfrey:
April also saw the formal opening of the Northcote Nature Reserve. Something which was dreamed up in 2016 had finally come to fruition. I have to add here that to get to this point has been a huge effort by those involved, fighting all along the way against oppositions and incompetencies. And even now it is open, managing the site in a democratic and inclusive way is an ongoing challenge.
June
By June, many plants were in full flower. However, no hope of digging any up for drawing – my spade literally only went 5mm into the sunbaked stony ground. I resorted to picking the flower head of this common knapweed as digging it out was not going to be an option.
July
By July, the reserve was a mass of wildflowers. Below shows a view through to the River Crane, with wild carrot, sow thistle and purple loosestrife on the near bank and Himalayan balsam on the opposite bank.
Wild carrot…
September
Now its September and the plants are beginning to die back, leaving beautiful skeletal frames. I have taken these two beauties back to my studio to draw.
Burdock and Dock
