Wilderness Street

Background

Whilst town centres across the country have been suffering from the relentless rise of online retail, leaving many now almost deserted, Ilford town centre is bucking this trend, confidently re-inventing itself by transforming previously empty areas into exciting, thriving modern spaces for the local community to enjoy.

One of these new projects is the aptly titled ‘Wilderness Street’ – known as a ‘pop-up’ public realm planting space. Wilderness Street is located right in the heart of the town centre, using 200 large planters to cover a substantial, previously built-up area with ferns, flowers, and silver birch trees, as well as mini-greenhouses and several seating areas. This beautiful splash of colour has transformed a previously dull, grey area into a vibrant community space where local artists can showcase their work, children can play, and local people can watch live music and dance performances, as well as simply relax and chill out in the new, natural ‘wilderness’ due to the sense of calm and peace this new area has created.

The Wilderness Street Project

Access Irrigation were responsible for the design and supply of the complete town centre irrigation system watering the substantial number of 1m x 1.2m planters. The irrigation system was fully automated, using a very reliable Hunter X2 multi-zone irrigation controller. To prevent the system operating in wet weather, and to prevent water wastage and potential damage to the plants, a rain sensor was included. The sensor is adjustable so that watering can continue to be prevented even after a pre-set quantity of rainfall, as the sensor dries out at a similar rate to the planting and then automatically re-sets itself once it has dried.

To comply with the Water Regulations, the system included a pre-assembled break tank and pump. The 180-litre capacity tank included a Type AB air gap to prevent backflow into the public mains and was supplied with a float valve inlet, to prevent the tank from overfilling by closing the inlet when the water level raises the float valve too high. The pressurised water supply to the system is provided by a Divertron submersible pump housed inside the tank, designed to operate when pressure drops. This pump has built-in dry running protection to prevent it from running if there is a water shortage, thereby protecting it from damage.

The area was divided into five separate zones operating at different watering times and durations, depending upon planting watering requirements, to enable efficient, managed watering for each zone. Several zones were included for this purpose – one valve for each zone, being opened in sequence by the irrigation controller. The valves include flow control adjustment and manual override for emergency operation. An adjustable pressure regulator was fitted to each valve, ensuring that the system operated at the correct pressure.

For ease of installation, the irrigation control equipment (controller, solenoid valves etc.) was fixed to a black wall-mounted control plate. The irrigation controller, a filter and the solenoid valves were attached to the plate and pre-configured – requiring only input and output water connections. The control plate was supplied with a connection for the mains supply and a steel braided hose to connect to the outlet of the pump and tank unit. Both the control plate and the pump and tank unit were located inside one of the greenhouses for protection.

Low density polythene (LDPE) pipe of 16mm and 20mm outside diameter (OD) was used as the supply pipework running from the control plate to the planters in each zone. All 16mm and 20mm pipework connections were made using PoziLock compression fittings. Upon reaching the base of each planter, discreet, pencil-thin, 6mm OD dripper pipe was connected via inserting push-fit connectors into a punched hole of the 16mm and 20mm pipe made using punch pliers. This 6mm pipe was then run up the external wall of each planter, being secured in position using black plastic pipe clips, then running to each pressure compensated PCJ 2 l/h ‘tee’ dripper spaced at intervals within the planter, the 6mm pipe being held securely in position on the surface of each planter using soil pegs. To ensure complete water coverage, 12 drippers were used for each planter.

The Result

Our project has created a beautiful communal area filled with nature – providing the local community with the perfect place to socialise, relax and de-stress, whilst also substantially boosting biodiversity. We are delighted with the resulting town centre irrigation scheme and are proud to play our part in helping to create a welcoming, natural environment, whilst helping to re-generate the town centre for the benefit of all Ilford residents.