Urban Forest: Borough to Bermondsey

Part of the Urban Tree Festival.

Paul Wood - author of 'London is a Forest' and London's 'Street Trees' - will lead this walk looking closely at urban trees.

The walk will trace the old borough of Bermondsey, which we can thank Ada Salter, former Bermondsey Mayor, a devotee of the 'Tree of Heaven' (Ailanthus altissima) for which she organised the planting around the borough.

Although Bermondsey has been absorbed in Southwark many of these trees remain and the boundaries may just be discerned through the historic planting decisions.

Ada Salter is commemorated at various points along the route, so the walkshop will be a part social history, part street tree exploration.

The route will include visits to the Thames riverside, at Bermondsey Wall East, Bermondsey Spa Gardens and three sites where Ada Salter is commemorated.

It will follow the old Bermondsey Borough and will also provide an insight into this once industrialised area, where new housing was created for the poor and Salter's vision for healthy neighbourhoods began to evolve.