I took the photo above in Belair Park, in Dulwich, South London, earlier this week as I walked across it to take a beautiful shortcut from Dulwich Station to Dulwich Picture Gallery. There's not a building or bit of concrete in sight, and looking at the view you could imagine you were at the edge of a meadow out in the country. Over the decades London has become one of the greenest cities in the world, and the amount of space left for nature is increasing.
Belair Park opened to the public in 1965, and people who live in the area have always seen it as a way of acting locally to help the environment. The Friends of Belair Park website says:
"The opening of Belair Park in 1965, from a fenced-off Southwark sports ground into a public park, with its ornamental lake fed by groundwaters from the “lost” River Effra, was an important step towards our green space involvement. The classic environmental book “Silent Spring” came out in 1962 from Rachel L. Carson (1907-1964), and the 1972 controversial Gaia Hypothesis from James E. Lovelock (1919-2022), which emphasised close interactions between life and our planet."
When I was there I spotted butterflies and bees enjoying beautiful patches of wildflowers, saw berries ripening on brambles and fruit trees, and watched ducks on the lake. The pictures were all taken in the park. The one in the middle is the lake and the one below shows a massive oak tree. At the top of my events post yesterday I shared a photo of rosebay willowherb growing there too.
Green London
I've been blogging regularly about London's green spaces in an effort to dispel a prevalent myth in the pagan community that it's just all concrete. Even in the City, which is of course heavily built up, there are still places where nature thrives, while Greater London has huge areas of woods, commons, parks and beautiful gardens.
The pictures on this post were all taken by me. Please do not use them without my permission.
Previous Green London Posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/07/green-london-ruskin-park-tranquil-gem.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/04/green-london-rookery-streatham-common.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/03/green-london-plumstead-common-its.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/03/green-london-londons-first-botanical.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/03/green-london-japanese-gardens-in.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/09/green-london-riverview-walk-river-pool.html
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