There is no life without water so making space for a pond in the gardens was essential in realising our aim to infuse the garden with life and make visible its defining role in nature, which we often take for granted. 

 

Located at the end of the hill to maximise sunlight exposure and efficiently collect excess rainwater from other areas of the garden, the pond has become a new home to an array of invertebrates, dragonflies and damselflies, frogs, toads, fish and birds. It features two basins with different depths divided by a walking bridge, and it is surrounded by plants that love damp, wet soils such as ferns, sedges, marsh-marigold, arrowhead, water forget-me-not, purple loosestrife, water mint, sweet flag, bistort, meadowsweet, cuckooflower, water buttercup and holy rope. The area is also protected by a crown of trees including willows, beeches, oaks, maples, bird cherries, hornbeams, alders, hawthorns, dogwoods and yews.

 

The pond not only provides an aquatic medium that is attracting more wildlife and improving biodiversity, but it is also a calm space for reflection about ourselves and our connection to the environment. Water is the origin of all life on earth, and thinking about its role in sustaining life helps us to view the world more holistically, reminding us that we are part of nature and that all species are inextricably linked by this most essential of elements.