On Sunday 22 October Roy Vickery will be leading a walk, Not Weeds but Valuable Resources – Uses of our Common Plants, in Ruskin Park, London Borough of Lambeth, meet at the bandstand at 2 p.m.  Organised by the Friends of Ruskin Park – http://www.friendsofruskinpark.org/uk; all are welcome.

Report:  About 10 people turned out on a blustery afternoon to spend about an hour looking at plants which are usually considered to be weeds, but at one time were considered to be useful.  These included groundsel (Senecio vulgaris) which in the mid-nineteenth century provided a meagre income for people who collected and sold it to people who kept cage-birds in London, and was used to treat constipation.