Shenley Park Walled GardenShenley Park Walled Garden
History of the Planting
Towards the end of the hard lanscaping work the planting of the Walled Garden began with the majority completed by 2006. The plants have flourished and have matured to appear beyond the 12 years old that they are.
The growing environment within the Walled Garden is superb, most of the soil is good quality due to the years of composting it received, the drainage is good, the aspect is South facing and the 16 foot high walls offer good protection. When the planting was first completed, irrigation was installed. However now very little watering takes place, only on new planting.
During the Second World War the Hospital had a large underground water tank constructed in case of fire. It is situated by Gardeners Cottage which is adjoined to the Walled Garden. The tank is fed by rainwater and has a capacity of 225,000 litres. In 2005 a pump was fitted to feed a timed dripper irrigation system for the Walled Garden.
The planting in the Walled Garden is an ever changing pattern, with new schemes and enhancements being carried out all the time. A plant catalogue is currently being made and discounting the many different varieties of roses, clematis and fruit trees there are at least 300 different types of plant in the Walled Garden.
We do have a plant sales area at the Greenhouses and the long term plan is that one of everything that is cultivated in the Walled Garden will be for sale.
The following images show the initial planting of the Walled Garden through to how it looks today.
Some examples of the inital planting and 5-10 years on:
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