Dr Brink opens her garden in honour of Queen’s Nurses
LONGFRIE House in St Peter’s showcased its gardens to the public in conjunction with the National Garden Scheme and Queen’s Nursing Institute.
It was the first time the house, which is owned by Dr Nicola Brink, had opened its gardens outside of the hidden gardens event that is traditionally held in the parish.
Dr Brink said that the event had been organised following a conversation she had with Queen’s Nurse Patricia McDermott, who is a consultant clinical nurse specialist for urology at the PEH, as well as area organiser for the NGS.
‘The work that the QNI does is innovating and it is a privilege to work with them day-in, day-out at the hospital.’
She said that the garden had been split up into a number of sections, each with something different for people to look at.
‘We are calling them “rooms”. We’ve got parts of the garden out in the sun, a courtyard area and a vegetable patch among other rooms. I’m very grateful for all the support and help from the volunteers and the local community in getting everything set up.’
Mrs McDermott said that conversations about hosting open garden events with the NGS and QNI had begun back in 2016 with renowned horticulturalist Raymond Evison.
‘He helped us identify gardens on the island which would be suitable. This year they are based here, at Le Grand Dixcart in Sark, and at Government House.’
NGS chairman Rupert Tyler said that the charity exhibited over 3,500 open gardens as part of its work across the UK, but that Guernsey was only one of two places – with Northern Ireland – that was not based on the UK mainland.
‘It’s magnificent how everyone has pulled together to make this happen. We really value the strong link we have with the Queen’s Nurses and the contribution they make to the NGS.’
QNI chief executive Crystal Oldman said that Guernsey had 12 Queen’s Nurses, the most per head of population across the UK.
‘There are just under 2,000 Queen’s Nurses in the UK so it’s quite a prestigious role. It was actually the QNI who created the NGS in 1927, which is why the two charities share such a close bond.’
Louise Cripwell, the wife of the Lt-Governor officially opened the gardens, and said she was very happy to have been invited to the event.
‘All the gardens are different and you get a real mixture of shade, sun and solitude. I’m delighted for Nicola and both charities, it’s a lovely event for the local community,' she said.
