A tradition of vegetable patches

The Brussels tradition of small vegetable gardens can be found in all the municipalities, from the richest to the most popular, along railway lines but also inside blocks. Thus, the ‘squares’ were originally groups of small working-class houses located back from the road and accessible by a narrow path. The municipality of Uccle is home to a good number of these typical nineteenth-century working-class housing complexes, including Carré Tillens, behind which lies an unexpectedly green area, mainly used for vegetable gardening. Here, the vegetable plots have been depolluted and redeveloped by Brussels Environment.