In 2017 in Salford, Manchester one of the biggest projects horticulture has ever seen began. The Royal Horticulture Society has taken on the most ambitious project ever – Bridgewater.
Located in Worsley, Salford, the Bridgewater estate was owned by the Earl of Ellesmere in the 19th Century. The estate burnt down in the 1940s, and the remains were then demolished. The gardens of the estate comprised of 11.3 acres of walled gardens, including heated walls in the central garden to ensure the fruit trees are heated and protected from the winter frost, guaranteeing a fruitful harvest.
The new project will be focussed on the original walled garden as its centre. The architect, Tom Stuart-Smith, wanted to centre the main feature of the project around the first depiction of a garden that we have in our modern society that dates to 500BC – the Garden of Eden. Therefore, the walled garden in the centre of the project will be a Persian Paradise Garden with fruit and vegetables. The Eastern part of the garden will focus on European and Mediterranean plants, and the central gardens will focus on American plants.
As the original structure dates to Victorian times, the walls of the main garden were in need of some TLC. To restore them, a team of specialist bricklayers were called in to restore the walls and to make them safe, while still preserving their rusticity. Another issue arose while excavating the land for this project. In true Victorian style, the soil is traced with arsenic, which they used as a pesticide. This means that the team will have to excavate the soil in the walled garden to ensure that the fruit and vegetables are edible. This soil will be moved to the ornamental garden, which doesn’t require such a high standard of soil, and the soil that was removed from the walled garden will be replaced with soil from the new car park. It struck me how eco-conscious this project seems to be – down to the promotional stand at Chelsea Flower show being transported and reused in the final garden to ensure it doesn’t go to waste. Not only this, but they have also invested in pigs to excavate the woodland, which is efficient but also low impact.
Initially, this project was voted against by labour councillors due to Salford’s strict anti-pollution policy. However, the city council has now donated around £19 million to acquire the land but also to improve the highways surrounding Bridgewater. Hopefully, the project will bring a sense of community to the Greater Manchester area and will encourage visitors to pick up a trowel or two and start on their own projects.
Unsurprisingly, the opening date has been delayed due to COVID, but hopefully, this new and exciting project will be open to the public very soon.
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