Tree cutting

Clearly the trees in Parkleys need cutting back from time to time but it is not good that they completely block the pavement when doing so. It would be better if they used some car parking spaces.

Gold plaques

Several of the plants in Parkleys have been given memorial gold plaques for former residents. 

Neat gate

Continuing the (short) neat and tidy sequence, this is a gate to a car park in Parkleys which has been well looked after in distinct contrast to the nearby fence and wall.

The keypad is something of a conundrum though. There is an open access for cars just a few metres away so there is no security on the site anyway.

Work at Herrick Court

I really like Parkleys to look at and walk through but I have doubt about living there and one of these is the amount of maintenance that the blocks need, it seems that there is scaffolding up somewhere all the time.

Herrick Court is getting the treatment at the moment, as it did in 2007. It may well have been done at other times too without me recording it. I only did so this time because I liked the composition of the picture, scaffolding always looks good.

Two signs

My near obsession with the variety of signs in Ham has somehow overlooked these two in Parkleys, while neither is remarkable the difference between them is interesting and in the competition between the two the upper one wins because of the better colour and use of lowercase.

Border planted

As expected, the border to the little patch of green in the corner where Ham Farm Road meets Parkleys has been planted. Previously a line of fir trees stood here and the new varied planting is a welcome improvement.

A curve of plants

The little corner where Ham Farm Road meets Parkleys is getting better with more planting and these new arrivals do a good job of neutralising the ugliness of the concrete bollards.

Lone tree

The main reason for walking along Ham Farm Road so regularly (most days) is to keep an eye on all of the building projects there and the second reason is this little corner where Ham Farm Road meets Parkleys.

In recent months the corner has been cleared, then seeded with grass, which grew very quickly, then a border was cleared along the two fences and now a tree has appeared in the corner.

Hidden statue

This spring, the statue A Bird in the Hand by Keith Goodwin on the edge of Parkleys was made more visible by a fallen tree and then the trimming of all of the bushes in one corner and that seemed like a good compromise between the built and the natural environments only now that balance has changed and new planting hides the statue.

Parkleys corner

These days I am walking along Ham Farm Road even more than usual, to keep an eye on all the building projects going on there, and that means walking around this cornet where Ham Farm Roads meets Parkleys, and there have been a few changes here too.

Most of the trees in the area were removed a couple of months ago and on this passing I could see that the area was being prepared for some planting.

 

But before I could post the photo of the prepared ground more work had been done and so I am posting this update.

Behind the plastic fence grass seed has been strewn. I hope that this is just the start and that there will be some more interesting planting too.

The corner section is interesting. There used to be a series of wood posts there (I recorded their gradual demise here) and these have been replaced by more substantial concrete ones.

Trees removed in Parkleys

This small patch of land, where Parkleys meets Ham Farm Road, has had some adventures in recent months, including the removal of a line of trees in front of the fence on the right which was then replaced. 

The latest change is the removal of two mature fir trees at the far end of the plot (one of the stumps can be seen in the middle) leaving the area almost empty of vegetation.

Let us hope that there is a more positive story for this plot still to come.

Improved visibility

Just over a year ago, the statue A Bird in the Hand by Keith Goodwin on the edge of Parkleys was made more visible by a fallen tree and its visibility has just been much improved by the trimming of all of the bushes in one corner.

Leaning wall in Parkleys

An orange plastic barrier has been installed the heavily leaning wall alongside the garages at Brooke Court in Parkleys. You may have to zoom in to see it but the most obvious sign of the leaning is the gap between the pillat and the wall where the stick and the tape are.

Time will tell whether the barrier is just there to keep people away from a wall that might topple over or to herald the start of some repairs.

Dead trees gone

A few weeks ago I wondered about some dead trees in the green corner where Parkleys meets Ham Farm Road and that problem has been resolved by removing them, and the healthy ones, to make way for a new rear fence to a house in Ham Farm Road. 

The fence is rather lovely but I hope that the trees are replaced and that the corner becomes green again.

It was only a matter of time ...

Earlier this year I posted a picture of the last post standing on the corner of Parkleys as it approached Ham Farm Road and then I wondered how long it would be before that too was knocked over by a careless motorist. Now we know.

A collection of dead trees

The little green corner on Parkleys as it meets Ham Farm Road is looking decidedly less green and more brown as all of the conifers in this row have either died completely or partially; so much so that they no longer hide the fence.

Missing bench

This is the Ham Farm Road end of Parkleys and the paving marks the spot where a south-facing bench used to be enjoyed by the residents. I have to assume that it will be replaced soon because it was popular, and understandably so.

Last post

A few years ago several posts were installed on this corner of Parkleys to try and protect the border between the path and the road, but years of bad driving, in this the quietest of roads, has demolished all but one of them.

A Bird in the Hand exposed

A Bird in the Hand, by Keith Goodwin, stands on the extrance to Parkleys and for many years it has been all but concealed by the vegetation around it, which I assume was not the original plan. The recent tree work in that section of Parkleys has opened up this view from Upper Ham Road.

The statue is best observed side-on so I am not sure that removing mature trees to create this view was a good idea,

Cut back, at last

Parkleys is rightly known for its landscaping and the grounds around the blocks are always well maintained so it has always been a mystery to be why the hedge between Tennyson Court and Upper Ham Road was allowed to grow to the extent that it was a serious obstruction to pedestrians. At last it has been cut back and the pavement is accessible again.

The bigger obstruction was at the top end of the Parade where a tree had completely blocked the pavement and it may have been this that caused the management team to take action.