Eleven Winchelsea Gardens opened on Saturday 15th June 2019 for the National Garden Scheme and on Sunday 16th for the Friends of the Hospital at Rye. We had 1000 visitors and raised £7,500 for charity.
Gardening is a serious business in Winchelsea and the climax of the year comes every June when hundreds of visitors stream in from far and wide. Long ago they were christened ‘Secret Gardens’ because it is impossible to tell what shape and size you will find behind the picturesque frontages of the town’s grid-pattern streets. Eleven gardens opened on Saturday 15th June for the National Garden Scheme and again on Sunday 16th to raise funds for the Friends of the Hospital at Rye. In all there were over 1000 visitors and almost £7,500 was raised for charity.
With that number of visitors most of the Winchelsea community was on call, baking cakes, serving teas, staffing the car park, selling tickets and, of course, getting the gardens to their usual high standard. A very big ‘thank you’ to everyone for making the event possible, and to Paul and the New Inn team for catering and to Nathan and his team at the Farm Kitchen.
It’s good to report that 2019 has equalled 2018 in raising £13,500 from various garden openings for different charities since the spring. The National Garden Scheme benefits mostly cancer and nursing charities and, closer to home, beneficiaries have included St Michael’s Hospice and the Friends of the Conquest Hospital. Friary Gardeners, a project that works with adults with learning difficulties, were on hand with their plant stall. They started in Winchelsea and are now based on The Ridge in Hastings.
You will find more detail about the Winchelsea gardens on the NGS website
More on the Hospital at Rye here
