The Quiet Garden 2017

A PEACEFUL HAVEN FOR BOTH PEOPLE AND WILDLIFE

Spring/summer 2017 saw the development of the first of our Sensory Garden Projects – the Quiet Garden, sited between the freshwater lakes where once there was a Go-Kart track.

Having been awarded £8,000 by the Tesco ‘Bags of Help’ grant scheme in December 2016, we ran design consultation workshops with local residents, and went on to:

• Dredge the freshwater lake adjacent to the garden
• Clear the site of gravel and concrete
• Create a new layout including a sensory pathway,
• Install seating, and
• Work with gardening volunteers to plant more than 1,000 plants!

Completion of the Quiet Garden project was celebrated on 27th November 2017 with help from The Worshipful Mayor of Poole, Councillor Lindsay Wilson. The event included a lovely performance by The Bittersweet Harmony and ‘Care Free’ Choirs and was supported by The Ark Cafe who supplied refreshments.

The Quiet Garden was very much a community effort and we would like to extend a huge thank you to the local groups and individuals that supported the project …

Those who donated to the project:

• Tesco through the Bags of Help scheme donated £8,000
• The Heritage Lottery Fund donated through the Park’s For People Poole Park Life Project
• The Bittersweet Harmony and Care Free Choirs donated £500 from their Choir Festival event and gave a lovely performance in keeping with the garden as part of its launch
• The Fence Stores Group for discounting the fencing
• Suttles Stone for discounting stone used for pathways
• The families who donated benches through the Borough of Poole Bench Memorial Scheme
• The Ark for providing a lovely spread of sandwiches and cakes

Those who helped to design the garden:

• Local residents and stakeholders who gave their ideas regarding quiet and sensory gardens for Poole Park
• Barbara Uphoff Borough of Poole Landscape Designer who worked with feedback given by local residents to develop this design, who oversaw much of the works and developed this lovely planting scheme!

Everyone who worked on the project:

• The Poole Park Gardening Volunteers who helped to clear the site, moved ‘mountains’ of mulch and mushroom compost and planted around 1,500 plants!
• Streetscene Team at Borough of Poole
• Bournemouth & Poole College Students
• Chestnut Nursery for sourcing some of the plants

Thank you again to everyone involved, we could not have done it without you!  We hope that all visitors enjoy this new addition to Poole Park