The concept of ‘garden cemeteries’ was developed in the early 19th century, to soothe mourning visitors and provide a ‘contemplative pointer to paradise’.
Source: The Victorian Cemetery – Sarah Rutherford
Over the last 6 years, the Friends have planted a huge variety of plants; some donated, some grown from seed and some propagated from plants in our volunteers’ gardens. When the group was officially formed, we committed to not only preserving the heritage of the cemetery, but to enriching the biodiversity aspects within it and subsequently bring visitors closer to nature. To celebrate our beautiful blooms this year, we held a ‘Cemetery in Bloom’ Open Day.
As well as inviting visitors to explore the cemetery and admire the blooms, we held an indoor event at the Victoria Social Club just a short walk from the cemetery. We provided an exhibition of the cemetery; photos of the work the Friends have done over the last 6 years, some of the repairs made, some of the interesting iconography, and some of the flowers and wildlife seen. In addition, we had a well-stocked plant stall, craft stalls and a raffle. A representative from Yorkshire Wildlife Trust was also in attendance to encourage visitors to attract wildlife to their own gardens and offer advice.
The weather was exceptionally kind to us on the day, bringing sunshine and warmth, resulting in our event being very well attended. We offered our visitors a variety of home-baking and refreshments which was enjoyed by all. The feedback was 100% positive, which provided the Friends with welcome acknowledgement that all their hard work has been appreciated!
The Friends express their gratitude to Oliver Fildes-Peace for designing the informational map/leaflet and to Zebra Print Group Ltd for printing of same.