Gardeners Southfields — Recycling and Sustainability for Greener Gardens

Our sustainable gardening commitment

At Gardeners Southfields we place sustainable gardening at the heart of every job. We design and maintain an eco-friendly waste disposal area on site, sort green waste at source, and prioritise composting, reuse and responsible disposal. Our approach to recycling and sustainability goes beyond a single solution: it is a network of practices that reduce landfill, lower carbon emissions and return nutrients to local soils.

Goals and measurable targets

We set a clear recycling percentage target: to recycle 70% of all garden and green waste collected by 2030. That target covers compostable material, wood, soil, and recyclable packaging from garden supplies. To reach this aim we monitor diversion rates monthly, refine our sorting at the eco-friendly waste disposal area and train crews on best segregation techniques consistent with the borough's approach to waste separation — including separated food/green waste bins, mixed dry recycling and residual collections.

Local infrastructure and transfer stations

We work closely with local transfer stations and material recovery facilities to ensure that garden waste is processed responsibly. Where possible we use municipal and licensed transfer points in the borough and neighbouring areas to minimise haul distances and emissions.

Examples of nearby transfer and processing options we use include:

• Wandsworth and neighbouring borough transfer stations that accept segregated green waste and wood;
• Community compost hubs and licensed anaerobic digestion facilities for food and mixed organic streams;
• Local soil conditioners and reuse depots that take excavated soil and hardcore for reclamation.

We prioritise low-mileage routes to transfer stations and operate an on-site sorting area in every team van so that material destined for recycling or reuse is kept separate from residual waste. This layered approach helps us meet the local authority's waste separation guidelines — where organics, paper/card, glass and mixed recycling are collected in defined streams — and ensures higher purity of recycling loads.

Partnerships with charities and community projects
Gardeners Southfields maintains active partnerships with charities and community groups to give garden materials a second life. We donate good conditioned plants, soil, and usable wood to community allotments, repair and pass on garden furniture to local charities, and support urban greening projects. These alliances reduce waste, support social value, and keep useful materials circulating locally rather than being sent to disposal.

Our charity partners include community allotments, local food growing projects and social enterprises that turn donated wood and soil into valuable resources for community gardens and training programmes. Working with these groups increases resource recovery and strengthens civic resilience in the borough.

Fleet and low-carbon transport: to shrink our carbon footprint we are investing in a fleet of low-carbon vans — including fully electric vans for urban runs and plug-in hybrids for longer journeys. Where electric charging is not yet viable we trial biomethane or low-emission diesel alternatives. Each vehicle is fitted with route-optimisation software to cut mileage and reduce idling time, which lowers emissions from transfers to local stations.

Operational practices for sustainable rubbish gardening areas

On site we create a dedicated sustainable rubbish gardening area for clients where cuttings, woody biomass and green waste are held until collection. This area is designed to reduce cross-contamination: clear signage, labelled bins, and composting bays keep organics separate from plastics and metals. We also offer mulching on site and return mulches to clients where appropriate, closing the loop and reducing the need for off-site disposal.

To support borough-wide waste reduction objectives and the community, Gardeners Southfields runs seasonal drop-off days and partners with local reuse schemes for timber offcuts, plant pots and soil. Our internal KPIs include recycling rate, tonnes diverted from landfill and percentage of collections handled by low-carbon vehicles. Achieving 70% recycling is not just a number; it is an operational standard that drives every decision from composting practice to partner selection.

We regularly review our sustainability policy to align with evolving borough approaches to waste separation and circular economy goals. By combining an on-the-ground eco-friendly waste disposal area, strategic use of local transfer stations, charity partnerships and a low-emission fleet, Gardeners Southfields aims to be a leader in sustainable garden waste management and practical recycling for urban gardeners.

Whether you are a homeowner, community group, or business, our focus on recycling and sustainability, low-carbon logistics and community redistribution ensures that garden waste becomes a resource. We measure, partner, reduce and reinvest — and we welcome collaboration that strengthens the local circular economy.

Our ongoing actions include increased on-site composting, expanded charity redistribution networks, continuous fleet electrification, and monthly reporting of recycling percentage achievement to maintain transparency and momentum toward our goals.