Plant Massacre

As I write, two council workers are butchering the plants and shrubs around Lant House that cost a great deal of money (not to mention effort in securing grants to put them in). They are cutting them down to approximately one foot above ground and destroying our community garden.
We remonstrated with them and asked them to stop, but they refused. Obviously, there is no-one to contact at the council offices on a Saturday and this damage will take years to repair.
It is disgraceful and I would like to know who is responsible for this vandalism.

Jay, ring your local councillors, their numbers are on the southwark website.

What kind of plants were they? If they were flowering shrubs and just finished flowering, now would be the best time to cut them back. The new growth they put on this year and in the spring will yield more flowers. Likewise, if they were plants such as geraniums, cutting them right back this time of year will give another flush of growth and flowers before winter. If I get the time this weekend, I'll go up and have a look. However, this sort of 'pruning' should be staggered so you don't notice it so much.

Thanks, Zoe - have contacted one councillor and shall the others.
Karen I - grateful for the advice. Some were flowering and were in need of a prune, but this is really drastic. There's hardly anything left!
Apparently, the surgery was the result of someone complaining that the shrubs are "dangerous"!!! The mind boggles

JayBee wrote:

As I write, two council workers are butchering the plants and shrubs around Lant House that cost a great deal of money (not to mention effort in securing grants to put them in). They are cutting them down to approximately one foot above ground and destroying our community garden.
We remonstrated with them and asked them to stop, but they refused. Obviously, there is no-one to contact at the council offices on a Saturday and this damage will take years to repair.
It is disgraceful and I would like to know who is responsible for this vandalism.

Sounds like a job for the Special Branch........

Reminds me of years ago when I phoned on a friday to protest at the destruction of two massive trees in new kent road, corner of theobold st. was told 'the one and only tree preservation officer' was away till the monday! job done by then..:-(

If there is no valid reason for extensive pruning by the gardeners I hope southwarks plant nursery will replace all the plants that have gone..do they still have a plant nursery I wonder?

I doubt they have a nusery anymore.... the perpetrators said they were bin men....
nothing against bin people, but as gardeners I don't think these guys were quite up to the job. Chainsaw happy!! Pictures before and after coming soon.....

That's terrible news. I pass by there frequently and always wished that the Rockingham could have a similar treatment. I think at the very least the council could have let people know of their intentions. The council are always too reactionary when it comes to plants of any kind. I was once told by an officer that window boxes could not be sanctioned by the council in case somebody complained about water dripping onto them below. So we are left with enormous amounts of green desert some of which have not a single thing other than grass. I am now dreading walking by Lant House as it will be too sad to see this.

Rockingham can have this, it just needs a few people to get together and do some planting. I bet BOST would help you.

Were those two 'bin men' fully trained in 'elf and safety' cant see 'bin men' diversifying? see pieces of eight the council operatives can branch out! and in that vein I will leaf it alone! lol