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Published: 3 June 2010
by JOSH LOEB

WHAT lurks beneath the surface of Regent’s Canal? Snappy reptiles and giant fish. 

Abandoned red-eared terrapins, that were released into the waterway as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-craze faded in the mid-1990s, sunbathe in front of Mike Jackson’s garden while beneath the surface three-foot-long pike, carp and eels swim, eyed by a heron. 

A qualified horti­culturalist who studied  at Kew Gardens, Mr Jackson is inviting anyone who is interested to view for themselves the flora and fauna in his garden and the adjacent Battlebridge Basin as part of the National Gardens Scheme (NGS), an open-to-the-public event taking place across Camden and Islington this summer. 

He is head of social enterprise, development and training at the Camden Garden Centre, a not-for-profit company that works with ex-offenders and trains people who have had a tough start in life. But he takes his work home with him and has created a beautiful oasis in the midst of King’s Cross, containing around 300 plant species including the spotted orchid and luxuriant shuttlecock fern.

He is one of many plant-lovers participating in the NGS scheme, which raises money for charities including Macmillan Cancer Support, and his garden is an example of how natural beauty can be nurtured with relative ease – even in places where land is scarce.  

“It doesn’t actually take that much work to create a garden like this,” he says. “If something will grow, weeds will grow. You can either grow weeds or plants – so you might as well grow plants.”

Mr Jackson’s garden sits on a stepped or ziggurat base built from scratch – but its creator says he is more interested in the plants than the design. 

“I’m not a designer,” he explains. “The ground here is part of  the canal shoring. Underneath is mostly rubble. This terracing technique dates back thousands of years. It gave me the oppo­rtunity to backfill with decent soil.”

In another part of Islington, meanwhile, an even more ambitious gardener has grown a tropical jungle complete with banana plants. David Matzdorf’s garden in Hungerford Road, off Camden Road, contains palm trees, acacia, ginger lilies, banana plants and bamboo. It has featured in the BBC’s Gardner’s World and numerous gardening magazines. What’s more, he has created an alpine scrubland on his roof. “I started experimenting with horticulture when I lived on an estate in Marylebone run by a tenants co-operative,” he said. “When I moved here, the removal guys had to send away for an extra van to collect all my plants. I’m trying to take advantage of London’s so-called heat island. You can grow things in London that you can’t grow in, say, Worcester."

Mr Matzdorf’s garden will be open on Sunday.

Also open as part of the event will be Barnsbury Wood, Islington’s tiniest nature reserve – a largely unknown patch of woodland owned by Islington Council.

• See below for other highlights, and admission details. 

Gardens opening to the public

No appointment is necessary to visit the following gardens – just turn up and enjoy.

• 37 Alwyne Road N1, Mr and Mrs J Lambert, open June 6, 2pm-6pm.  The New River curves around the garden. You could be in the country. £3, children free.

• 1 Battlebridge Court, Mike Jackson, open June 20, 2-6 as part of a group opening with Barnsbury Wood and two other nearby gardens. Combined admission £6 or £2 per garden.

• Gloucester Crescent Gardens, NW1. Two Camden Town gardens in street with well-known literary and musical past - and unexpected oases of calm. August 8, 2pm-5.30pm. £3.50, children free.

• 1A Hungerford Road, N7, David Matzdorf, open June 6, midday-6pm.

See jungle palms and alpine shrubs. £2, children 50p.

For full programme of openings see www.ngs.org.uk