The final speaker at the Edible Eastside event was Jarred Henderson, a designer and urban grower at Wayward Plants. Jarred’s talk was substantially different than the previous two, it focussed primarily on the sites operated by the organisation he works for; why they exist and the benefits they provide to communities.

Jarred provided a brief background of Wayward Plants and how the organisation had started several sites in the London area. He focussed firstly on the Union Street Urban Orchard, a project started in 2010 to regenerate a disused site. Jarred then moved on to discuss a more recent venture, the Urban Physic Garden also located in London. This particular site was again built on derelict land, and featured a variety of innovative ideas: a pop up community garden, spaces for medicinal plants and a café.

Jarred’s talk brought to light the potential for these leftover, unused spaces, particularly for growing food in the city. He also stressed the well being angle of these sites and their overall impact on the nearby communities. One may question whether similar projects can happen here in Birmingham…can we use spaces around our own city in a similar manner; improving the health of those who surround such sites.