Guerilla Gardening in The Bush

Flowers in Macfarlane Rd

Every now and again, amidst all the noise and grunge of Shepherd's Bush, someone does something that makes you think our neighbourhood is pretty decent after all.

In Macfarlane Rd, one of our neighbours has anonymously and quietly planted flowers in the street next to one of the municipal cherry trees.

This is a quiet act of public-spirited optimism, in part because even flowers often get stolen in Shepherd's Bush. 

Visit the pages of NextDoor and you will find countless tales of the theft of property, not just obvious targets like cars, scooters and bicycles but even plants and shrubs - not the sort of thing you'd generally expect to be stolen - gardeners aren't supposed to be criminals. 

In my old neighbourhood of Notting Hill, bicycle theft is now so common that, even if you present CCTV footage to the police,  they are unlikely to take any interest. My solution to this problem is to own a bicycle so old and unattractive that no-one would ever want to steal it. And, even then, to lock it up with two powerful locks. 

So thank-you, my patient, anonymous and generous neighbour, for making an effort to make our street a tiny bit better, one flower at a time, and taking the risk that your efforts may well wind up in someone else's window box.

The Shepherd's Bush Blog offers a personal view on life in Shepherd's Bush. If you would like to contribute a story about our neighbourhood, email us at shepherdsbushblog(at)gmail.com