A KEEN vegetable grower was told that he has no "right to light" when he complained that 60ft trees have shrouded his garden in darkness.

The statement was made in a letter from Waltham Forest environmental services department to Ken Dixon, 63, of Chingford Avenue, Chingford.

He had asked for the trees in Chingford Mount Cemetery, adjoining his garden, to be pruned so that light could reach his greenhouse and vegetable patch.

Mr Dixon, who has lived in Chingford Avenue for 36 years, has been aware of the problem for some time.

But he reached the end of his tether when six months spent cultivating two tomato crops were wasted when they turned black and died through lack of light.

He said: "You could say that this is a growing problem as the trees get bigger every year.

"Six years ago, light was able to get to my garden, but now the trees have got so big that between August and January their shadow stretches right up to the back of my house.

"I think the council is correct that legally I have no right to light, but I love growing things in my garden and I simply don't know what to do."

The letter written in response to Mr Dixon's complaint states that, while environmental services sympathises with his plight, it would only consider pruning the trees if they were overhanging his garden.

The same letter also states that, if the council agreed to carry out the work on the trees by Mr Dixon's garden, they would have to do the same for "all cemeteries, parks and other open spaces in the borough".

This would create huge ecological and environmental damage and would be at great expense to local taxpayers.

The letter concludes that the retention of trees is for the benefit of the whole community and no one individual has a right to light.

Mr Dixon says that he does not want to move out of the house, but is now unsure how he can carry on with his favourite hobby.

He said: "As I'm retired, I enjoy spending a lot of my time in my garden. Without light it's impossible to use the greenhouse and grow vegetables.

"I suppose I could pursue other hobbies but gardening has been a passion of mine for a long time and I don't want to give it up."