Plant experts visit the Victorian Walled Garden
LEADING plant experts from the UK were given a rare chance to look around the ambitious gatehouse project at the Victorian walled kitchen garden on Saturday.
During a packed three-day visit to the island, they also spent time at Raymond Evison’s clematis nursery, visited Bluebell Woods, studied native plants at Jerbourg, viewed the grounds of Government House and various private gardens and attended a reception hosted by the Lt-Governor.
The visitors included 28 members of the woody plants committee of the Royal Horticultural Society.
The committee’s chairman, Tony Kirkham, was highly impressed with the gatehouse at Saumarez Park, which is entering the final stage of development as an educational and historical centre.
‘This is going to be fantastic.
‘We need more gardeners and we have to get more young people interested in horticulture. This is an impressive project which you can see will create many opportunities,’ said Mr Kirkham, who has more than 40 years’ experience as a horticulturist and arboriculturist at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew.
Mr Evison, also a vice-president of the Royal Horticultural Society, led Saturday’s tour around the kitchen gardens.
A series of delays on the Victorian Walled Kitchen Garden are coming to an end as it starts to enter the final phase in its Gatehouse project.
The project has seen the garden rip out its old dilapidated shed, replacing it with the construction of a multi-purpose gatehouse.
The idea originally arose in 2012. Fundraising started in 2017, which included the Raise the Roof lottery campaign, donations and plant sales.
Construction began in 2020 however was almost instantaneously brought to a halt by Covid.
