"Feeding London" exhibition: the forgotten market gardens of South West London
The "Feeding London" exhibition will celebrate the long history of market gardening in Middlesex from 1st May to 1st September 2015. The exhibition, created by Jam Yesterday Jam Tomorrow* volunteers, will trace the growth, peak and decline of the production of fruit, vegetables and flowers in the area. It will reveal the rapid and radical change of land use arising from London’s ever-growing population, from the desperate need to increase food production in the 1800s, to the demand for housing for the new ‘commuter classes’ in the 20th century. An invaluable collection of the memories of local people who worked in the nurseries and market gardens of Hounslow, Isleworth, Brentford, Twickenham and Hampton, right up until the last days of the industry in the 1970s, will be shared. The stories of the great gardening dynasties of Middlesex, who developed horticultural expertise, built flourishing businesses and became major employers, will also be told; along with those of the seasonal migrants such as the ‘Welsh’ women who walked every year from Wales and Shropshire to help with the harvest, and the skilled horticulturalists who emigrated from Europe.
Old Town Hall
Whittaker Avenue
Richmond, MX TW9 1TP
United Kingdom