Revelling in local nature

From butterfly spotting to a celebration of all things mulberry, the Trees and Green Spaces Group has been exploring Camberwell’s natural environment, as Sophy Tayler and Mallory Smith report

Over the summer, the Trees and Green Spaces Group (co-managed by the SE5 Forum and the Camberwell Society) has been celebrating the themes that unite residents and allow us to find new ways of enjoying our green heritage.
Mulberry Moments, held on 20 June in Burgess Park as part of London Climate Action Week, was a community celebration of the park’s newly planted avenue of mulberry trees.
Supported by the Camberwell Society, the Nunhead Gardener garden centre and TFC Supermarket, the event brought together more than 150 attendees for an afternoon of music, conversation and tree-focused storytelling. Picnic spaces and chairs were fully booked and afterwards people stopped by for teatime scones with mulberry jam.
Peter Coles, the UK’s leading mulberry expert, set the scene and spoke about Camberwell’s long mulberry heritage and the importance of climate-resilient planting, helping everyone understand why these trees are such a smart choice for London’s warming climate.
The concert in Chumleigh Gardens created a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere, with musicians Winston Skerritt, Belinda Braggins and Maurice Brown providing the soundtrack.
Later, the Butterfly Safari with the SE5 Forum on 4 July was a genuinely lovely success, bringing neighbours together for a morning of curiosity and appreciation of Camberwell’s green
spaces. Despite the cloudy weather, the group’s enthusiasm never dipped and the softer light made spotting butterflies easier as we moved through four local parks.
We identified five butterfly varieties, with each sighting sparking excitement and a little collective triumph. We had a chance to pause by wildflower patches, scan undergrowth and observe the small movements that usually go unnoticed.
The event encouraged a gentler pace and a deeper attention to detail, which made the experience feel both grounded and joyful.
Using the Big Butterfly Count app added a sense of purpose to the day. Logging each sighting together gave the group a sense of contribution, knowing our observations would support a national effort to understand and protect these important pollinators. Our data will be part of the 2026 national online map that tracks numbers and species across the UK.
More free events are to follow, including a dawn chorus and bat walks. The Camberwell app, or Camberwell Life website, will feature these, but you can book directly via our events page at eventbrite.co.uk/o/34115634395.
If you would like to help with the 2027 programme of events, please contact via greenspaces@ camberwellsociety.org.uk