Black Gardening in Britain

I grow scotch bonnet, calaloo and dasheen at my community garden in Bellingham, CoCo Collective (pictured below). At the allotment, we utilise the three sisters method, a technique cultivated by the Haudenosaunee people of North America, where you grow squash, beans and corn together. This enriches the soil as the beans produce nitrogen, which helps the other plants to grow, and the large squash leaves help with moisture retention. My compost at home is filled with both plantain peels and cabbage. My growing tradition is not from one school.

Being given the opportunity to put together a display that centres around Black gardeners and their practices was not without its challenges. There are (currently) few known artistic representations of Black British gardening practice historically. Showcasing works of people who are gardening of their own agency, as opposed to being an ornament in a painting was my aim. There are several examples of people of African descent being utilised as props in gardening. John Nost’s Blackamoors are a fine example of this, where the statues are depicted as kneeling in quite uncomfortable positions. With this being my first time curating a display, I have learned so much. Learning about the different panel length requirements, observing the conversations around printing labels and finding the right angle for placing works. I went back and forth with Ella Finney, Assistant Curator, on the different ways in which the artworks could hang. I am so grateful to Ella for her patience, skill and flexibility.  These are details that I will appreciate even more when I walk around galleries and museums, and it has been affirming to see the response to the display from visitors. I wanted the rehang to prompt people to question. It highlights those who brought contributions to horticulture, contributions that may have previously been diminished or criticised. The display serves as a celebration of Black British gardeners in their entirety. Whilst the original brief had been around historic Britain, I felt it necessary to have the inclusion of contemporary gardeners, who through their various cultural bricolages, constantly provide new plots for us to learn from. The display features John Ystumllyn, a Black Welsh gardener who lived and worked in North Wales in the 1700s whose illuminating life still leaves so much to be discovered. He is joined by the Gilman painting of the Black gardener, whose presence kickstarted this line of questioning. There is not much known about the subject in the painting; I wondered what Gilman’s intention had been in painting a figure of African heritage, especially in the height of Pax Britannica. Gilman was known as a radical, but why did he use this specific figure?  Who was the man in the painting?

Also featured is Thomas Birch Freeman^[2] (1809 – 1890), who is foremost known for his contributions towards methodism in West Africa, was a botanist. He was born in Twyford, Hampshire, to an African father and English mother. He worked at Orwell Park, which was an estate in Suffolk, as Head Gardener for Sir Robert Harland. However, Freeman was raised Anglican and after word had reached Sir Harland on his growing affection towards Methodism, he was given a choice to abandon Methodism or lose his position. He chose his first duty, to his “greater Master and His work”, resigning shortly after. His contributions to gardening continued, however. For example, Freeman maintained correspondence with Sir William Hooker, the first Director of Kew Gardens, collating scientific data on tropical fauna for Kew Gardens. I am still looking and learning about the lives of Thomas Birch Freeman and John Ystumllyn. I do not consider myself as an expert on these men’s lives. Garden historian Advolly Richmond’s research is to thank for a lot of what we do know about Thomas Birch Freeman, but a lot of the information on both men doesn’t come from themselves. This is not the case with the women who feature in the display. Eloise Reed, Sylvia Halstead and Janine Nelson all wove their gardening stories through their oral interviews. These gardeners lived and continue to live amazing lives, although gaps in the recollection of their contributions remain. Gaps that I hope can be filled as more displays such as this continue to bring forth new perspectives and stories. The museum has been a crafting table for me to break down and review my gardening practice, but equally to confront the uncomfortable legacies and realities that surround horticulture. But I also hope that from this display, we look at Black gardeners in Britain today. Often at the forefront of my mind, especially after the Frank Walter exhibition, I think about other “Frank Walters”, John Ystumllyns who pass the Garden Museum every day with stories akin to some of the people we celebrate in this display, but still, their stories are missed. I think about the disparities that they may be facing with funding applications or allotment spaces. How are our institutions actively creating environments for people like Mr Pink (whose house in Lewisham the Garden Museum exhibits through Helena Appio’s film, which can be viewed in our Collection Galleries) to share their stories?

See the new Black Gardening in Britain display in our Collection Galleries upstairs at the museum: plan your visit

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^[1] https://ruby-tandoh.medium.com/empire-of-seeds-ee4308a529c4

^[2] Thomas Birch Freeman: Missionary Pioneer to Ashanti, Dahomey and Egba, by John Milum