page_title: Carshalton
section_title: Lavender Fields
hierarchical_section_title: Carshalton / Landmarks / Lavender Fields
caption_attribution_description: Lavender Field
context_page_description: Carshalton is a town, with a historic village centre, in the London Borough of Sutton, in South London, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Surrey, it is located 9.5 miles south-southwest of Charing Cross, situated in the valley of the River Wandle, one of the sources of which is Carshalton Ponds in the middle of the village.
  Carshalton consists of a number of neighbourhoods. The main focal point, Carshalton Village, is visually scenic and picturesque. At its centre it has two adjoining ponds, which are overlooked by the Grade II listed All Saints Church on the south side and the Victorian Grove Park on the north side. The Grade II listed Honeywood Museum sits on the west side, a few yards from the water. There are a number of other listed buildings, as well as three conservation areas, including one in the village. In addition to Honeywood Museum, there are several other cultural features in Carshalton, including the Charles Cryer Theatre and an art gallery in Oaks Park. It is also home to the Sutton Ecology Centre, and every year an environmental fair is held in Carshalton Park to the south of the village.
context_section_description: There are two historic lavender fields. One, at Oaks Way, Carshalton Beeches is a not-for-profit community project that manages three acres of lavender. The other, a 25-acre commercial site in Croydon Lane called Mayfield, is popular with tourists. It is located just within the Carshalton South and Clockhouse ward within the London Borough of Sutton. This area was once famous as the "Lavender Capital of the World". Although now it has been shutdown due to a rat infestation. From the 18th to the early 20th centuries the North Downs of Surrey, with its chalky free-draining soil, ideal for lavender growing, were at the centre of worldwide production of lavender. It was a very prosperous part of the local agriculture. Blue fields could be seen all over Mitcham, Croydon, Wallington, Banstead, Carshalton and Sutton. The scale of the operation can be understood from the fact that the Daily News in 1914 was able to state:
  At Carshalton Beeches in every direction the low hill sides of the farm beyond Beeches Halt are swept with the bloomy pastel tint of the lavender flowers.
caption: Lavender field in the south of Carshalton
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