Boston Site Showcases CWGC’s Innovative Horticultural Approach

We are continually looking at the best and most sustainable way to care for our plots and our team in the east region of UK have been hard at work renovating one of our plots in Boston (Lincolnshire).

This site has been extremely difficult to maintain over the years due to being heavily shaded by trees. This led to it being very uninviting to visitors.

Over the past ten years multiple attempts had been made to adjust the planting and surface to fit with the traditional CWGC aesthetic but to no avail.

No turf was possible across the bulk of the plot leaving a slippery walk to even get to the first row of headstones. Plants in particular were also struggling to thrive in the heavily shaded environment.

Tasked with finding an alternative way to not only renovate the plot but look at a different sort of horticultural model, Richard Marsh (Regional Operator Coordinator, East Region, UK) took on the challenge with relish and designed a new garden within the space. 

By analysing the site and the conditions, the aim was for this to feel like a woodland garden with access right across the plot in and amongst the headstones with plants and paths flowing throughout with the intention of inviting visitors further into the plot. 

Access still had to be maintained to all headstones and views could not be obscured by planting which was too large.

We also wanted to keep the repetition of planting so familiar to our plots across the world and needed to keep planting directly in front of the headstones to prevent soil splash all while keeping the name and personal inscription visible to visitors. 

Over the space of one week at the end of February, the East region gardening team, ably brought the idea to life with plants sourced both from within the plot and local growers.

Plant selection was critical to both make the scheme work visually, as well as providing valuable nectar sources for local pollinators. 

The flow and feel of the new design invites visitors deeper into the plot now with easy access to all headstones, whereas before they may have been cautious to even leave the road due to the state of the turf. 

Plants such as Hellebores, Pulmonaria, and Mahonia have been carefully used throughout the new scheme which we know to be shade tolerant and hardy to the climate in the region, whilst still being in keeping with the woodland garden aesthetic.

Snowdrops have also been used throughout which tie the planting nicely to the wider cemetery. 

The woodland feel of this plot is further enhanced by chipped bark paths meandering through the headstones giving a slower, more contemplative feel for the visitor.

This chip was specifically selected for being compactable to allow access for wheelchairs and pushchairs as well as being FSC certified and in keeping with the rest of the woodland feel of the plot.

Over the coming seasons we will see the plants fill out the borders and we’ll be allowing them to freely grow out more naturally beyond the boundary of the border currently seen, again to give it a more naturalistic but still cared for feel.

The vision is that the planting will merge and blend into the fine bark surface pathways to create a much looser, more natural effect, whilst still providing a sense of repetition and coherence.

It will still provide ready access throughout the plot with routes between the headstones remaining.

This work demonstrates that there is the flexibility to really work with the site and the specific environment. This new horticultural aesthetic can also help inform our decision making on these sorts of plots in the future.

The challenges this site poses with the existing horticultural standards being unmaintainable, we believe this new style to be a unique take on a CWGC plot for the future.

This will be the first Commission plot to adopt this new approach to horticulture and as such will be closely monitored as to its relative success in delivering the core purposes of the horticulture.

CWGC's horticulturists are always thinking about the best way to care for our sites and this planting scheme at Boston is an innovative initiative designed to ensure we take the most sustainable approach to caring for our plots and supporting our team by creating a really beautiful and practical planting scheme. 

By employing the best horticultural techniques, we can maintain our sites to the highest standards while preserving them for future generations.