Help Bowes & Bounds Conected and Harringay Online Seed a Million Poppies

© Copyright Steve Fareham and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

Inspired by the Royal British Legion's Centenary Poppy Campaign, Bowes and Bounds Connected and Harringay Online are setting a target to get a million poppies blooming across our neighbourhoods as a living memorial to the fallen of the Great War from the local community.

The aim is to collect sufficient donations from local people across the borough to buy one million Flanders poppy seeds. Purchased through the Royal British Legion's campaign partners, £1 of every £3.00 pack of 10,000 seeds will go direct to the Royal British Legion.

The seeds will then be packed into convenient community planter envelopes and made available at partner locations around the borough. Anyone can collect seeds for guerrilla or small group planting and we'll also be arranging a few 'Million Poppy' seed sowing events. (Let us know if you'd like one in your area).

Hugh and Liz at Harringay Online are equally enthusiastic to support the Royal British Legion project and I'm sure this would work for our area. What do you think? Where should we target in Bowes Park and Bounds Green?

There are still a few elements of the idea to finalise - and we need to secure permission from landowners to plant in some places. We may organise jount planting events - perhaps getting kids involved and there may even be a Spring seed swap around this theme.

After that it's all down to you. Fancy making a donation? The cheapest way is through Harringay Online's Sustainability Account via Paypal. Please be generous. Remember £1.00 in every 3 donated will go straight to the Royal British Legion. The remainder will be used to plant a spectacular living memorial in this centenary year.

Click and donate NOW!

Get in touch if you would like to be involved

4 members like this

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mary Blake on January 30, 2014 at 20:00

Sounds good Richard, Bowes Park has a fine tradition of guerilla hollyhock sowing to follow. Some people consider poppies to be weeds, but I love them, and of course it's a special year. I'll sprinkle a few seeds in the community herb beds on the platform at Bowes Park station.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Rachella Sinclair on January 31, 2014 at 13:35

I'll put a link on Noel Park net, too.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Richard McKeever on January 31, 2014 at 22:06

Many Thanks to Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone for her support of our campaign.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Richard McKeever on February 1, 2014 at 15:55

We are grateful to our three Councillors from Bowes Ward, Enfield, who are supporting this campaign.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Alan Sitkin on February 7, 2014 at 0:32

Achilleas, Yasemin and I are deeply grateful to you Richard, and to Bowes and Bounds, for this great idea. So Tile Kiln Lane is good, I think Russell Road too ...and probably Millicent Grove imminently.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Richard McKeever on February 14, 2014 at 10:06

As an update to this discussion- I attended a meeting with Lewis Taylor, Haringey Parks Manager for the west of the borough, along with Hugh and Liz from Harringay Online

At our very positive meeting it was clear that the Council are entirely supportive so we will now work up specific set of plans to co-ordinate this "grass roots" initiative within a commemorative WWI programme being co-ordinated throughout the borough over the forthcoming four years.

If you want to involved in supproting the project or have ideas for where we could plant poppies locally - please get in touch.

We also need a small amount of money to ensure that we can source the seeds please donate if you can