Llwynfedw Gardens

Llwynfedw Gardens in the Birchgrove area of Cardiff was privately owned until 1941, when Mountjoy Ltd (the Bute Estate) offered it and several other open spaces to the Council as a gift, provided that the open spaces were preserved in perpetuity.[1] Prior to this some Birchgrove residents had petitioned the Parks Committee asking for a bowling green to be provided at Llwynfedw Gardens, and the Chief Parks Officer had responded that the land in question was privately owned.[2]

In the 1939-45 war Llwynfedw Gardens was used for allotments. In September 1946 the Parks Committee agreed that notices be served on allotment holders to leave by 6th April 1947 so that construction of a bowling green and tennis courts could proceed.[3]

Ordnance Survey maps indicate that the Llwynfedw Gardens bowling green and tennis court were built in the early 1950s. In May 1952 the Parks Committee accepted a quotation for the supply of turf for the bowling green.[4]

A pavilion was under construction in January 1974 and the Parks Committee agreed to approve the following uses for it: playgroup, pensioners' meeting place, tennis and bowling activities.[5]

Llwynfedw Gardens bedding

Llwynfedw Gardens bedding display c.1985
© John Lee

Llwynfedw Gardens in summer

Llwynfedw Gardens in summer c.2005[10]
© Cardiff Parks Service

Llwynfedw Gardens

Llwynfedw Gardens September 2013

Some trees and shrubs survive from the 1950s and there was extensive planting in the 1970s and 1980s. Notable trees planted at this time include Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), Sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) and Honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos). The present-day railings around the Gardens were installed in the early 1990s in place of an overgrown Berberis hedge.[6]

In 2013 the Council proposed that several bowling greens be closed to save money, Llwynfedw Gardens among them. The others were Maindy, Trelai, Pentwyn, Grange Gardens and Howard Gardens,[7] all of which had closed by 2016. The Llwynfedw green remained open, after local residents formed a Friends of Llwynfedw Gardens group and took it over. In 2014 the Council introduced a charge for bowling clubs of £6,300 per year towards the upkeep of each green.[8][9]

Other links

Sources of information

  1. Meeting of the Parks, Baths and Cemeteries Committee 8th January 1941
  2. Meeting of the Parks, Open Spaces and Burial Board Committee 21st November 1933
  3. Meeting of the Parks, Baths and Cemeteries Committee 10th September 1946
  4. Meeting of the Parks, Baths and Cemeteries Committee 22nd May 1952
  5. Meeting of the Parks Committee 14th January 1974
  6. Personal communication (MC & TD)
  7. WalesOnline February 16th 2013
  8. WalesOnline May 9th 2014
  9. WalesOnline May 10th 2014
  10. Cardiff Council Horticultural Database (2003-2010)