Hidden away among the green spaces between the housing estates of North Abingdon, the Dunmore Farm Community Garden is the sort of place that many residents may pass by without ever knowing it is there. Created and maintained by local volunteers, it has transformed a grassy area of land into a community garden.

In 2024, local residents began exploring the creation of a community garden on Town Council-owned land, working with organisations including Abingdon Carbon Cutters and Community Action Groups Oxfordshire. After a year of planning and consultation, the project received council approval, and work began in March 2025. It has also been supported by businesses.

Volunteers created raised beds, planted fruit trees, flowers, herbs, and vegetables, installed water butts and composting facilities, and added wildlife features such as a bug hotel. The community space produces food, supports biodiversity, and brings local people to learn together.

One of the garden’s most distinctive features is a sail-like tarpaulin designed to collect rainwater. Following yesterday evening’s thunderstorm and overnight rain, it helped replenish some of the stored water after a warm day and ahead of what forecasters say could be the hottest June day on record.

After yesterday’s walk we visited the other bank of the River Thames to look closer at the large area of trees that had been cut down last month. The map above gives an idea of their location.

The area beyond the tumbledown picnic benches used to be trees.

This picture gives another view, with the piles of stacked tree trunks in the distance.

Tuckwells were granted permission to extract minerals in 1971 from a number of areas on Thrupp Farm, including the field called Nyatt [Area 5]. They excavated minerals from all the other areas but not Area 5. More recently they have been extracting minerals from Sutton Wick, south of Abingdon.

During an enquiry in 2019 their spokesperson said they still intended to extract minerals from Area 5 in future. The record of the discussion is at https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/mgAi.aspx?ID=20620. Local people wanted the area left undisturbed.

The area not only includes meadows and trees but also a small lake, all of which had become a habitat for wildlife.

Walking the Causeway between Abingdon and Culham Bridge I was amazed to see how the ditch has been dug out and bushes cleared.

There is a view both sides of the Causeway now.

For years litter from passing traffic has blown into the ditch and bushes. There is now a tidemark of torn plastic round the side of the field. Other plastic has blown across the field.