Remembering Mr Birkinshaw who brought colour into our lives

Perhaps, like me, writes Keith Johnson, you may have wondered as you wandered through the parks of Preston at the cavalcade of colours that greet you and been amazed at how this summer beauty appeared as if by magic.

- Keith Johnson

Back in April, 1933 the Parks Superintendent Mr. Algernon Birkinshaw, who had come to Preston in 1928 having previously worked on parks in Manchester, took time out to explain how it was achieved to a Lancashire Daily Post reporter who visited the Miller Park nursery to see the preparations being made to stock the parks and open spaces with a wealth of summer flowers.

There were serried lines of thousands of pots, containing the flowers in embryo, receiving constant attention in the greenhouse where temperatures would be gradually lowered before their acclimatisation in the open air and eventual planting in the parks. All done to ensure they attained the height of their glory at the end of July and through to late September.

Mr Birkinshaw explained that one of the drawbacks of living in an industrial town, where atmospheric conditions were not as good as they could be, was reflected in the arranging of flowers. He explained that discoloured flowers were worse than none at all so certain colours were eliminated from the scheme of things In Miller Park.

White flowers were seldom introduced, for they would be immediately discoloured by the constantly billowing smoke from the railway locomotives as they passed along. Remarking that he could imagine what visitors would say if a bed of white flowers turned a nasty grey.