Fairfield Open Yardens Weekend – Sunday

33 Portland Street, LA1 1SY

A small yard with mature, informal planting.

Features

• A pond – with newts – and running water
• Numerous climbing plants

Access

Through side passage to the right of the house.

There is a 12cm step up and a 75 cm wide door into passage.

13 Regent Street, LA1 1SG

Back yard in Victorian terrace.

Features

• Established climbers and perennials chosen for pollinator-friendliness and a long flowering season
• Walls and raised beds full of niches for invertebrates
• Invertebrate hotel, small deadwood pile
• Birdbath, nest boxes
• Hedgehog access and hibernation spot

Access

At the back of the house via the alley between Regent and Portland streets.

The alley is wide but has uneven cobbles. The gate to the yard is 75cm wide without a step. The yard is paved.

26 Cromwell Road, LA1 5BD

Medium-sized garden

Features

• Large range of garden and wild flowers
• Butterfly-breeding-friendly plants
• Undisturbed areas for wildlife
• Wooden, raised pond

Access

Round the back of the houses via the grass track from either Aldcliffe Road or the far end of Cromwell Road by the nature reserve.

The ground in the garden is quite rough and is accessed through a 90cm gate.

106 Aldcliffe Road, LA1 5BE

Tea & refreshments

Half acre garden backing on to the Nature Reserve.

Features

• Mature trees
• Bird feeding station
• Wildflower meadow area
• Wild area overlooking the Fairfield reed bed

Access

Through the garage on the left of the house.

The garage door is 2m wide and there are no steps. The garden is grass with a gentle slope at one side. The paths in the garden are wide and even.

121 Aldcliffe Road, LA1 5BE

A front and back garden, a bank along the side, and a secret area backing onto the house. Overgrown when bought from a skilful plantswoman, the garden is a “work in progress”.

Features

• Trees
• Pond
• Wild-flower area
• Greenhouse
• Vegetable plots
• Log pile

Access

At the front of the house.

A 1m wide path takes you up to the front garden. A wide, slightly uneven asphalt drive leads directly down the side of the house to the back garden. There are no steps.

12 Oaklands Court, Aldcliffe, LA1 5AT

Tea & refreshments

Mature garden with stunning views across the fields to Lancaster.

Features

• Herbaceous borders
• Fruit trees
• Lawns
• Rockery
• Insect attracting flowers
• Bird feeders

Access

Through gate on right.

The gate is 1m+ wide and there is a flat, 1m wide path made of paving stones. There are no steps.

7 Truman Avenue, LA1 5EP

An ordinary suburban garden trying to encourage wildlife.

Features

• Two ponds
• Beech hedge
• Nectar bearing bedding plants
• Hedgehog holes
• Bird boxes and feeders
• A new wildflower patch

Access

Through gate by front door.

There are no steps, and there is a flat, even surface. The minimum width of path and gates is 75 cm.

28 Lincoln Road, LA1 5DN

Back yarden.

Features

• Two walls have climbing plants: honeysuckle, jasmine, and clematis
• Narrow raised beds with wild garlic and a simple rose supported by a trellis
• Six trees in large containers
• Many pots and containers with various flowers in season
• Strawberries and some vegetables

Access

From the back via the alley running between Lincoln Road and Wingate-Saul Rd.

The alley is wide and made of flat stones. The gate to the yard is 75cm wide with a small 5cm step. The yard itself is concrete and flat.

34 Sibsey Street, LA1 5DF

Newly established back yard.

Features

• Walled flower bed with flowers for pollinators
• Gravel sink for succulents
• Eric the Easter Island head

Access

Enter via back alley between Sibsey Street and Lincoln Road.

The alley is wide and made of flat cobbles. The entrance to the yard is 75cm wide with no step. The yard itself is flat and made of slate chips.

Old Furness Street Stables, Furness Street, LA1 5QZ

Tea & refreshments

A tranquil haven on the marsh.

Features

• The large pond attracts frogs and, occasionally, a greedy heron
• Flowers, weeds, all a bit “free-flowing” and colourful
• The green roof on the garage attracts bees in our “sitooterie”

Access

The entrance is at the corner of Ford Street and Furness Street.

The garden path is wide, flat and concrete.

17 & 19 Briery Street, LA1 5RD

Two adjacent, walled back yards

Features

• Elderberry
• Willow
• Bird feeders
• Rambling rose

Access

Enter through the passage between houses 17 and 19.

The entrance is 65cm wide. The passage and yards are flat concrete.

14 Long Marsh Lane, LA1 5QX

Small urban horticultural oasis bordering Charnley Community Garden.

Features

• Overflowing with pots and flowers
• Various climbing plants
• Seated areas
• Small plant nursery

Access

Enter from Charnley Street at the back of the house.

The entrance gate is 80cm wide with no step. The path inside is flat astroturf and 50cm at the narrowest part.

26 Long Marsh Lane, LA1 5QX

The yarden is partly a medium-sized yard, and partly a community garden patch. It’s slightly unkempt but a lovely place to sit and listen to the birds.

Features

• A couple of seating areas repurposed from an old shed
• Lots of pots
• A curved flower bed with roses and honeysuckle

Access

Enter from Charnley Street at the back of the house.

The entrance gate to the yard is 55cm wide with no step. The yard itself is flat and paved.

30 Long Marsh Lane, LA1 5QX

Small yard with “divorced” garden, one in a row of four. Emphasis on wildlife planting.

Features

• Mini pond
• Coppiced hazel
• Woodland corner
• Pollinator plants in border
• A smattering of unusual herbal plants (because I am a herbalist)
• Often acts as a nursery for plants that are guerilla-planted nearby

Access

Enter by the service passage at the back of 34 Long Marsh Lane.