The Flora of the City of London Cemetery

by Paul Ferris ©2007

(For a list of the plants that have been found in the cemetery Click Here)

The City of London Cemetery lies in the south of Epping Forest, adjacent to Wanstead Flats to the south-west, the Old Sewage Works Site and Wanstead Park just to the north, the Aldersbrook housing estate to the west and partially to the north, and the River Roding and the Alders Brook to the east. This brings the boundaries of the cemetery into two London Boroughs, Redbridge and Newham. 

The City of London Cemetery is managed by the City of London Corporation, the land purchased by the Commissioners of Sewers of the City of London in 1854 when they bought 200 acres of farmland at Aldersbrook belonging to Lord Wellesley (Sir James Tylney Long) at a cost of £30,721. (For more information on the Aldersbrook Farm and Aldersbrook Manor, click here)

A burial ground was required by the Corporation because of a lack of such space in the City of London itself. The first burial took place in 1856, though the cemetery was consecrated somewhat belatedly in 1857. It was incidentally but most importantly the fact that the Corporation owned this land that enabled them to play such a historic role in the creation of Epping Forest as we now know it. In 1871 the Corporation took up legal proceedings to maintain their right of pasturage (as owners of land adjacent to the Forest) - as the forest was in danger of becoming enclosed. After legal proceedings lasting several years and the City of London having purchased the Forest from 19 manor owners for a little over a quarter of a million pounds, the Epping Forest Act of 1878 was passed and Queen Victoria gave up her hunting rights. This resulted in the forest being available for use by the public.

This is the largest cemetery in London, and in recent years the authorities have tried to encourage visitors to enjoy the grounds other than for the more obvious reasons. There are some 250,000 visitors a year, and many of these will appreciate and wander through avenues of trees, appreciate the Rhododendrons in June and gaze at the ancient headstones. There are few famous people buried here - Winston Churchill's nanny and the first two victims of Jack the Ripper are perhaps the most notable - but the cemetery has the widest variety of trees in the area outside of Epping Forest, and a variety of wildlife - birds, plants and animals. Even geologists are catered for in the variety of material used for headstones and statues. The authorities are even planning a £600,000 visitor centre and exhibition hall.

The south-east boundary from the cemetery's main gate is separated only by a low wall and railing fence from part of Wanstead Flats, and where the Flats finish at a corner by a railway bridge a footpath (known as the Bridle Path) separates the cemetery's south eastern edge from the railway. At the eastern end, the path widens and drops down towards the Alders Brook and then turns the corner in a north-westerly direction to continue by the edge of the cemetery fence. A narrow strip of unused land - known locally as the Butts - separates the path from the brook; and the wild-flowers here can be a beautiful and most surprising spectacle for the border of Newham and Redbridge. Beyond the brook is a golf course; not so interesting for plants, but open land nevertheless. In a few hundred yards the path passes between the cemetery and some allotments, and beyond these is more unused land by the River Roding, with the golf course on the eastern bank. Some hundreds of yards farther on the path separates the cemetery from the site of the old Redbridge (Southern) Sewage Treatment Works, which is now part of Epping Forest and known as 'The Exchange Land'. At the north-eastern corner of the cemetery the path turns left, and again serves to separate the cemetery from the sewage works site, more allotments, and eventually the Aldersbrook housing estate where the path finishes. The rest of the north-west and south west boundary back to the main gate is bordered by the gardens of houses.

Excavations took place in 1972-3 in a small area to the north and east of the catacombs. The catacombs are located in what would have been the eastern embankment of the Great Pond, an attraction of Aldersbrook Manor. The strata was found to consist here heavy gravels and London clay.  

The cemetery itself has been said to be one of the finest examples of a Victorian Cemetery in the country (Guy Vaes, Belgium, 1978: Cemeteries of London (an album with photographs by the author). The grounds are maintained to a high standard, and there is an air of tidiness and formality about much of the cemetery. An almost constant process of lawn cutting and strimming takes place so that rank grassland is virtually absent, and even long grass is comparatively rare. Indeed from a botanical point of view perhaps too much grass cutting is done, so that species that might otherwise thrive do not get a chance. An example of this is the scarcity of harebell Campanula rotundifolia, which was present in large amounts a few years ago when there was a greater interval between the times when lawns were cut.

______

The lawns constitute the greater part of the cemetery area, and even though the frequent cutting spoils the potential for wild-plants, still a good number may be found. In the spring one of the first plants to flower in quantity is early crocus Crocus tommasinianus. A variety of garden crocii make their appearance usually a little later than these. Field wood-rush Luzula campestris is plentiful over wide areas, and this in places is together with early violet Viola reichenbachiana, common violet V. riviniana and sweet violet V. odorata. The violets are often also found on gravestones. Spring beauty Montia perfoliata is found in places, sometimes on graves but often around the bases of trees nearer to the roads. Similarly, bluebells Hyacinthoides spp. occur mainly by roadsides and grave-sides, probably indicating deliberate introductions. A group of primroses Primula occurs in the lawn near to the church, but these also include some pink-flowered forms indicating hybridisation with garden forms. This indicates the difficulty of deciding on naturally occurring or deliberately introduced plants here. Early summer is notable for the amount of ox-eye daisy Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, which is abundant almost everywhere in the grass between gravestones. Also found are a variety of speedwells including Germander speedwell Veronica chamaedrys and common field-speedwell V. persica. Perhaps a regime of maintenance might be developed in the future that takes botanical needs more into account. In the older and more remote parts of the cemetery there must be areas where grass could be cut perhaps two times a year - in June after the spring flowering and again in autumn. This would allow flowers to seed and to recover. Though certainly some people visiting might wonder at the "untidiness" of such areas, as many would enjoy the spectacle of wildflowers flourishing.

Though much of the land is lawn, with grave and tombstones therein, there are about seven miles of roadway within the grounds. Many of these are lined by mature trees, an example being those avenues of horse-chestnuts Aesculus hippocastanum that radiate from the main gate. Elsewhere, avenues are lined with such species as London plane Platanus x hybrida, and common lime Tilia x europaea. 

Only relatively small areas of the cemetery could be called "wild". The most important of these are a small area of woodland near to the eastern boundary fence known as The Birches, and adjacent to this a rough area where rubbish and plant cuttings are and have been tipped known as the Chute, which is described below. The woodland area has been encroached upon by this tipping; and a stream which used to run in a deep gully through an edge of the wood has been mostly culverted and then covered. Presumably the stream is of run-off water from the slightly higher ground of  Wanstead Flats to the south-west (see Alexandra Lake). The outflow can still be seen just within the cemetery fence - a constantly flowing stream which now seems to constitute the source of the Alders Brook. Before the culverting took place, I have been told, kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) used the stream. Now even the gully is has been filled in, although a pond was created as a wildlife refuge near to the boundary fence. The most significant tree of the woodland is grey poplar Populus canescens, with numerous mature trees and young ones. There are some large horse chestnuts Aesculus hippocastanum seeding readily, as is sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus. Silver birch Betula pendula, of which some mature specimens are to be found along the edge of the wood by the boundary fence, is another species which readily seeds itself. There is some scattered holly Ilex aquifolium, elder Sambucus nigra, and numerous small yews Taxus baccata. The ground cover is in much of the area dominated by ivy Hedera helix. Nettle Urtica dioica exists on the edges of the wood, as does daffodil Narcissus spp. and Spanish bluebell Endymion hispanicus, both likely to have been introduced by way of throw-outs. Nearer to the tip area is a large expanse of ground elder Aegopodium podagraria. There are some pedunculate oaks Quercus robur, goat willow Salix caprea, and wild cherry Prunus avium along the northern edge of the wood, and Turkey oak Quercus cerris at the southern edge. The wood is a quiet area of the cemetery, and rarely visited. Much use is made of it by a variety of birds, even woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) have been seen.

Specimen Trees

A vast number of trees have been introduced to the cemetery to enhance its park-like atmosphere. Few are of great age; most probably planted since the cemetery was founded. Of those that pre-date this, a grand English oak that is sited at the end of Belfry Road, almost at the northernmost point of the cemetery, may well be the oldest and perhaps derives from the time of Aldersbrook Manor. All of the trees (except those in the Birches) have been identified and tagged on behalf of the cemetery, and the list comprises over 3000 specimens. Of these 40 or so species have been included in a booklet entitled "The Cemetery Tree Trail", which is available from the cemetery office. To pick a few out of these, included are coast redwood Sequoia sempervirens, of which there are a few specimens scattered about the cemetery, a monkey puzzle Araucaria araucana, maidenhair tree Ginko biloba, and a strawberry tree Arbutus unedo. Unfortunately the latter blew down in a strong wind, but the stump has been allowed to re-grow (photo).

The Chute is a disturbed piece of land to the north and west of the wood. It is disguised and sheltered from the rest of the cemetery by the wood itself, or by lines of trees including Lombardy poplar Populus nigra 'Italica' along Poplar Road. A continuous regime of tipping various types of rubbish means that the enclosed area is gradually being in-filled, and the wood encroached upon. The tip itself does contain numerous plant relics, some of which persist for a short time as with the vegetable marrow Cucurbita maxima that was found in 1979. Some of these find their way to the waste ground around the tip, and to the edges of the vehicle tracks in the area. Thus many specimens of garden daffodils Narcissus spp. grow nearby and even occasionally a garden tulip. Many small animals use the tip area, foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are common and hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) have been seen, as well as rats. In the summer the noise of house crickets (Acheta domesticus) used to be persistent on warm and even less than warm days, but is less or not heard now. On the northern edge of the tip area, an embankment serves to separate it from the rest of the cemetery. This may well be the remnants of a previous tip, and gives a rise in elevation to the land. A dense and impenetrable tangle of bramble Rubus fruticosus agg. occupied the slope nearest the tip, and at the top some fine plants of gorse Ulex europaeus occur, spread along a track which gives an access from the cemetery into part of the tip area. The track itself provides a habitat for a variety of plants, including shepherd's purse Capsella bursa-pastoris, common winter cress Barbarea vulgaris, corn spurrey Spergula arvensis, evening primrose Oenothera sp., and some fine displays of ox-eye daisy Chrysanthemum maximum. In summer, although there is a rubbish tip a few metres away, this part of the tip area was warm and peaceful and a lovely place for plants and insects. However, in recent years, much of this has been cut into and levelled, and much of the gorse is now gone. On the lower ground, much of it rutted by vehicle tracks either recently or in the past, species such as common horsetail Equisetum arvense, sand-spurrey Spergularia rubra, coltsfoot Tussilago farfara, scentless mayweed Tripleurospermum maritimum, and bristly ox-tongue Picris echioides can all be found. 

From time to time pieces of ground within the cemetery is disturbed for one reason or another. This is particularly true of areas around the perimeters. Also, between the north boundary fence and the nursery area, an enclosed portion of land is used for a variety of purposes. This includes the storage and movement of soil used within the cemetery, and as such is in a constant state of change. There are earth tips as well as rutted and muddy areas, and also rank grass. A clump of hard rush Juncus inflexus has been found here. Other species of opportunist plants found in these disturbed areas from time to time include corn spurrey, scentless mayweed Tripleurospermum inodorum, scented mayweed Matricaria recutita, spear thistle Cirsium vulgare, celery-leaved crowfoot Ranunculus sceleratus and toad rush Juncus bufonius. Grasses include rough meadow grass Poa trivialis, soft brome Bromus mollis, tall oat grass Arrhenatherum elatius and Yorkshire fog Holcus lanatus. The boundaries of the cemetery, particularly that to the east, provide a habitat for hundreds of garden daffodils. Some of these find their way through the boundary railings and then constitue plants of other localities - as for example the Alders Brook or the old Sewage Works Site, as defined in WansteadWildlife.

A wide variety of plants may be found either growing on or associated with the gravestones. Many are plants that have been deliberately introduced, and some of these have either evidently persisted in this particular location for a considerable time or else have spread from the graves themselves into the surrounding grassland. An example of this is thrift Armeria maritima, usually found planted on the graves, but occasionally in the ground immediately adjacent. Houseleek Sempervivum spp. can also sometimes be found adjacent to the graves on which they were originally planted. As would be expected, an early plant to flower in the year is winter aconite Eranthis hyemalis, but it is not common and more usually on gravestones. However a small amount does grow adjacent to these. Associated with gravestones too is wild strawberry Fragaria vesca, often to be found growing beside a slab

Plants that appear spontaneously on gravestones include spring beauty, speedwells Veronica spp., petty spurge Euphorbia peplus, sun spurge Euphorbia helioscopia, white stonecrop Sedum album, reflexed stonecrop Sedum reflexum and wall pepper Sedum acre as well as chickweeds and a variety of lichens and mosses that have not been identified. Harebell is found in an unusual situation growing on the roof of a large vault grave in Anchor Road, and a few fronds of polypody Polypodium vulgare grow from slabs in Church Avenue. Other ferns growing usually from the sides of gravestones are buckler Dryopteris dilatata, hart's-tongue Ophioglossum vulgatum, bracken Pteridium aquilinum, maidenhair spleenwort Asplenium trichomanes and male fern Dryopteris filix-mas. A single adder's tongue Ophioglossum vulgatum was known behind a grave from 1975 to 1996, but has not been found recently.

It may be noted that gravestones immediately adjacent to each other will frequently have a very different collection of plant species. 

There are three ponds: by the New Crematorium, by the Old Crematorium and in the Birches Wood. The first two are maintained in a formal manner, and most of the plants that are associated with them have probably been deliberately introduced. The pond by the new crematorium has great spearwort Ranunculus lingua, water-plantain Alisma plantago-aquatica, flowering rush Butomus umbellatus, hard rush Juncus inflexus, soft rush Juncus effusus and jointed rush Juncus articulatus. Also in the pond is horn-wort Ceratophyllum demersum, duckweed Lemna minor, a small amount of greater duckweed Spirodela polyrhiza, and in 1994 just a few fronds of water fern Azolla filiculoides. In June 1994 the pond had many blue-tailed damselflies Ischnura elegans present, and in July the hawker dragonfly Aeshna grandis.

The old crematorium pond has hard rush, horn-wort and duckweeds, as well as some resident red-eared terrapins (Chrysemys scripta) which are present and sometimes abundant in many of the local ponds and lakes. During the late summer of 2007 the pond was renovated and some additional plants were introduced; some of these - it may be supposed - were moved from the New Crematorium pond. Noted after the renewal, on the rockery banks was royal fern Osmunda regalis. Unfortunately, during this work a specimen of spotted orchid Dactylorchis maculata that had been known here for some years was destroyed.

The third pond is much more natural in appearance, although was created deliberately within the Birch Wood in an attempt to enhance the wildlife habitat within the cemetery. The pond is sourced from a concrete culvert which is though may - as its source - be drainage of surface water from Wanstead Flats, possibly via Alexandra Lake. The pond's outlet is via a pipe, the outlet of which constitutes the first visible flow of the Alders Brook. The pond is considerably surrounded by vegetation and overshadowed by trees, and is almost unseen until very close to it; it is also difficult to access. With the creation of The Birches Nature Reserve in 2006, it is now possible to view the pond to some degree from within the Birches. In 2007, the pond was more or less filled with celery-leaved buttercup Ranunculus sceleratus. The concrete culvert itself acts as a habitat for a variety of mosses (as yet unidentified), but also some nice specimens of Hart's-tongue Fern.

In attempting to write a flora of the cemetery, decisions had to be made as to which species were to be included and which to be left out. In such formal and managed surroundings, many species are obviously deliberately introduced. It was not thought worthwhile including planted shrubs and it would be virtually impossible to cater for bedding plants! However plants that evidently have been deliberately introduced, but have the appearance of having become to some extent naturalised, are included. Many of these occur only either on or close to gravestones, but some are much more widespread. Similarly, trees and shrubs which have been planted and which do not appear to be reproducing either by seeds or by suckers, are indicated by a # (hash) sign. In the end, it has been my own decision whether to include a species or not. Doubtless there are other species of plants to be found and identified in the City of London Cemetery, and no work has been done on the status of the species recorded in this paper. In the list that is available, not enough information is available to describe the frequency of individual species. In many instances, only the grid-square in which a species has been found is given, whereas in others some indication to the actual location is shown. That a species is not shown from other squares does not of course mean that it is not present. 

The sequence of plants in Table 1 follows the order and nomenclature of Stace (1997). The letters and numbers after some of the entries in these tables refer to the squares shown in the map, each square being 0.25 x 0.25 km.

Acknowledgements for the earlier version of this paper (2000) were due primarily to Mr. J.P. Luby, past Superintendent and Registrar of the City of London Cemetery, as well as the cemetery staff. Particular thanks are expressed to the late Richard Baker of Manor Park for helping to gather records. 

For the revised version (2007), acknowledgements are due to Mr. Ian Hussein, Director of the Cemetery, to Xa Naylor, Service Development Officer, to Gary Burks and other members of the cemetery staff who have been so helpful in gaining access and providing information.

CLAPHAM, A.R., TUTIN, T.G. and WARBURG, E.F. 1962. Flora of the British Isles. Ed. 2 Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

CLIVE STACE. 1997 New Flora of the British Isles. 2nd Edition. Cambridge University Press

MITCHELL, A., and WILKINSON, J. 1982. The Trees of Britain and Northern Europe. Ed. 2 Collins, London. 

GIBSON, G.S. 1868. The Flora of Essex.

The City of London Cemetery and Crematorium - update on some of the issues referred to in the above article.

2005

The Corporation of London's Public Relations Office had produced a publication - The City of London Cemetery and Crematorium Tree Trails. This is available at the Main Gate and features almost 70 varieties of tree to be seen on two tree walks.

A survey of the trees in the cemetery was undertaken by the cemetery authorities, the species recorded and the specimen trees tagged with a number. 3622 trees were identified and mapped, notes being made of their state of health and any remedial work that needed to be undertaken, and about 92 species are known to be present.

A policy of allowing some areas to remain in a state to allow for seasonal wildlife to be enhanced has been instigated - these are called Seasonal Wildlife Zones.

The following article is taken from that published in The City of London Cemetery and Crematorium Newsletter, Issue 10, 2005/6 :

THE BIRCHES NATURE RESERVE

The cemetery's Conservation Management Plan (page 10), highlights the area know as The Birches as significant in terms of its history, ecology and archaeology.

The area has been left virtually untouched for around a century, and is a valuable site for encouraging wild flora and fauna to thrive.

Nature Trail factsheets will be devised with the assistance of the Wren Conservation & Wildlife Group, and we believe that we are well on course to provide a first class wildlife habitat which benefits the local ecology and ensures the development of education and recreation for visitors now and long into the future.

Factsheets will be free of charge upon request.

Volunteers from the 21 Royal Engineers ACF started work on clearing a path on Saturday 9th October 2004.

The Nature Reserve opened for visits by the public in 2006. At the Cemetery Open Day on Sunday 13th August, a walk was led around the Nature Reserve by Paul Ferris. About 15 people attended, and although weather conditions weren't conducive to much wildlife activity, the visit seemed favourably received. Future tours may be planned.

For more details about the Birches Nature Reserve click here

For photographs of some of the wildlife to be found in the cemetery click here