Gardens open for National Gardens Scheme

Message from NGS publicity.

After the heat in the early part of the week, the forecast is for pleasant warmth, perfect for visiting gardens and enjoying the great outdoors. Some very popular gardens will be opening their gates this week: On Wednesday 20th July: MERTON, Shepherd's Lane, Bicton, SY3 8BT will be open from 1 - 5 pm. 3m W of Shrewsbury.  Follow B4380 from Shrewsbury past Shelton for 1m Shepherd's Lane turn L garden signed on R or from A5 by pass at Churncote r'about turn towards Shrewsbury 2nd turn L Shepherds Lane.   Admission for adults £5 Mature ½ acre botanical garden with a rich collection of trees and shrubs inc unusual conifers from around the world. Hardy perennial borders with seasonal flowers and grasses plus an award winning collection of hosta varieties in a woodland setting. Outstanding gunneras in a waterside setting with moisture loving plants. Refreshments in aid of another charity. OFFCOT & APPLEDORE, Kynaston, Kinnerley, SY10 8EF.  These two adjoining gardens will be open for three consecutive days on Thursday 21st, Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd July from 10 am to 4 pm each day.  Just off A5 on Wolfshead r'about (at Oswestry end of Nesscliffe bypass) towards Knockin.  Then take the 1st L towards Kinnerley. Follow NGS signs from this road.   Combined Admission £6 for adults.  Offcot is a cottage garden with lots of winding pathways leading to different focal points. The garden is packed with a wide range of evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs and underplanted with herbaceous perennials. There is a natural looking pond with a running stream feeding into it. A haven for wildlife. Another main focal point to the garden is the garden bar and games room, where refreshments will be available, tucked up the top of the garden amongst lush growth of herbaceous planting and shrubs. There are also two greenhouses which are used for growing all the summer bedding plants and hanging baskets. It's a garden with lots of hidden surprises. Appledore adjoins neighbouring garden Offcot. It has gone through extensive changes and is managed by Tom Pountney from Offcot. Both gardens are opening together this year so that visitors can see a developing 'edible garden' with 6 large beds for a wide range of fruit and vegetables, all grown organically. To encourage pollinators, the garden also has a wildlife pond and a small wildflower meadow. Refreshments available. OSWESTRY GATEACRE ALLOTMENTS AND GARDENS Lloyd Street, Oswestry SY11 1NL  will be open from 10 am to 5 pm on Sunday 24th July 2 parts to the allotments either side of Liverpool Road. >From Whittington r'about on A5 turn towards Oswestry B4580. In ½m go across staggered junction (L then R). Continue 100 yds then bear sharp L. After 200 yds straight over r'about, then 3rd on L. Admission for adults £5 Two adjacent, large allotment communities in the heart of Oswestry; well supported and well-loved by local residents. Vast array of fruit, flowers, vegetables in every shape and form grown on the allotments. Allotment holders will be on-hand to talk about their produce and give advice. Entry ticket covers both sides of the allotments. The site is managed by a small committee dedicated to keep an informal relaxed environment. There is a good mix of ages and everyone is more than willing to lend a hand. You can see the diverse growing methods, novel ideas and decorative structures that each individual brings to the site. The site was featured on BBC's Countryfile on Sep 1st 2019. Light refreshments.  Main pathways are wheelchair friendly.  Disabled WC on one side of the site. Children are admitted for free to all Shropshire NGS gardens. Don't forget that many of these gardens, and more besides, are open by arrangement throughout the season.  Find out more here. More dates for your diary: Sunday 7th August MERTON, Shepherd's Lane, Bicton, SY3 8BT from 1 - 5 pm and looking further ahead: Saturday 13th August MOAT HALL, Annscroft, SY5 8AZ from 12 noon to 5 pm Sunday 14th August DELBURY HALL WALLED GARDEN, Delbury Hall Estate, Mill Lane, Diddlebury SY7 9DH from 10 am to 5 pm THE FERNS, Newport Street, Clun, SY7 8JZ from 12 noon to 6 pm   You can find out more about these gardens on our website here.   FIND OUT MORE Community Gardens Award In addition to our annual donations to nursing and health charities, the National Garden Scheme grants awards to help community gardening projects. In 2011 the National Garden Scheme set up an award scheme in memory of Elspeth Thompson, the much-loved garden writer and journalist who died in 2010. Elspeth was a great friend and supporter of the National Garden Scheme; she also wrote an admired 'Urban Gardener' column in the Sunday Telegraph. Her column often celebrated community gardens and so the awards support gardening projects carried out within local communities all over England and Wales. From social welfare and gardening projects that help the isolated, the disabled and the disenfranchised, to support for community orchards, food banks and social prescribing projects at GP surgeries, the funding provides a much-needed boost to those working on community garden projects throughout England and Wales Since it began, just shy of £400,000 has been donated to almost 200 community projects.  The 2023 Community Gardens Award application process will begin in October with full details available on the National Garden Scheme website at: https://ngs.org.uk/who-we-are/community-gardens-award/