Mansfield community spirit blossoming through lockdown thanks to green-fingered neighbour

The gardens of the bungalows on Somersby Court were in a dire state six years ago when Eireen Brooks moved in to number seven.

Since then, they have undergone an impressive transformation, going from overgrown grass and weeds, to hanging baskets and colourful floral arangements.

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Eireen, who is now retired, said: "It is a council property and when I first moved in there was just weeds and overgrown grass on the front.

“So for the first year I got the grass looking OK, and then I started cutting shapes out of the grass and putting plants in.

"It is not very big, but I have hanging baskets, I have window boxes, plants growing everywhere.

“It does look pretty – I started doing it because I love gardening and I think plants cheer you up, I just love it.”

Peter and Anne Evans, who live in number 3 in the court, wanted to thank Eireen and her neighbour from number 8, for maintaining the “magnificent” gardens.

Peter Evans, 80, said: "The gardens are very nice and they have done it all themselves, planting flowers, and it looks so nice that I thought it would make a nice picture in the Chad.

"I am no gardener myself, but I just think it looks absolutely magnificent.

"There's such a dismal outlook with the world at the moment, it just makes you smile."

His wife Anne, 78, said: "She does our garden as well, because we can't do it anymore.

"At the bottom of the close it is just magnificent as you turn in.

"They have been doing it quite a few years, but this year in particular its amazing.

"They had a letter from the council congratulating them a couple of years ago but it really ought to be acknowledged because they put such a lot of hard work in to it."

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Eireen would usually attend the University of the Third Age, U3A, gardening club, but they have not been able to get together this year because of Covid-19, instead focusing on the court gardens.

But that’s not the only thing that Eireen has been unable to attend because of the pandemic.

She said: “I do Anne and Peter's because they can't do it.

"During the lockdown, when the council didn't come and cut the grass I cut everybody's grass on our court to keep it nice and tidy.

"It was looking a mess and it was driving me mad.

"I am supposed to be in America right now because my daughter and grandkids live in America, but that was cancelled because of lockdown, so I have spent the money on my garden.

"I don't know the name of all the plants, but I know what I like."