Current support for the Garden

Our major funding commitments for the coming year are to the new compost demonstration area at the Garden between the Walled Garden and Rose Lane and the much-needed Arboretum car park. Work on the latter will include an encircling drain, levelling, a porous surface and planting many trees and small copses. Timothy Walker expects it to be ‘the most beautiful car park in England’.

Our regular £55,000 contribution to the Garden’s core funding has been allocated to:

• Improved facilities: re-soiling and turfing in the Medicinal and Lower Garden

• Staff training and a third of the salary of one of the botanical horticulturalists

• Equipment for the education programmes

• Plant labelling

Supporting Harcourt Arboretum

The Friends have been major supporters of the exciting changes at the Arboretum: the development of Palmers Ley’s, paths, fencing, planting and now the new car park. The team, led by the enthusiastic new Curator Ben Jones, is now ready to take the Arboretum to its next stage with more planting and better facilities for education and for all visitors.

We heard at the 20th anniversary party that work on the new Arboretum car park, which has been made possible by Friends’ support, will start very soon (depending on what will suit great crested newts and badgers). Based on Kim Wilkie’s Arboretum landscape plan, it will be a splendid replacement for the present inadequate obstacle course, and will feature many specimen trees and several copses. “England’s most beautiful car park” (in Timothy Walker’s words) will be fundamental to attracting visitors, to the education programme and to realising the vision set out when we launched the Palmer’s Leys appeal five years ago.

The Friends made an initial donation of £50,000 and a recent further gift of £100,000 towards the development of the car park. It is an outstanding example of a large essential project that did not appeal to the usual Trusts and other donors but which the Friends (in conjunction with the University) have been able to make possible.

Legacies and donations

Legacies from Friends make a big difference. Our contribution to the Arboretum car park includes a very generous legacy of £62,000 from Mrs Doris Lloyd Thomas. The Arboretum will also benefit from a donation by a member of the Friends which will enable two further fenced roundels of trees to be planted in Palmer’s Leys. If you would like to consider leaving a legacy or giving a donation, we can advise on tax-efficient giving. Please contact the Friends’ Administrator, Liz Woolley, secretary@fobg.org, 01865 286690.

Electronic Bulletin

Our thrice-yearly electronic bulletin has proved very popular. An elegant format and many pictures mean that it is an attractive source of news and features about the Garden, the Arboretum and Friends’ events and activities.

It can be seen at www.fobg.org. Members who are not yet receiving email notification of new issues, and would like to be included, should email secretary@fobg.org

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