Dahlias and cosmos in the border designed by Jo Thompson at Water Lane, Hawkhurst, Kent (credit Maria Bell)
Discover Water Lane in Hawkhurst, Kent and spend a morning with Jo Thompson and Ian James
Saturday 5 November, 10am-12pm
Tickets are £10 and include a welcome drink and cookie
Book Tickets
On Saturday 5 November, garden and landscape designer Jo Thompson will be in conversation at Water Lane, in Hawkhurst, Kent. Listed by House and Garden and Country Life as one of the country’s top ten garden designers and plantswomen, Jo Thompson is one of the key partners working with the Water Lane team to develop the historic site into a garden for the 21st century.
Jo will be in conversation with Ian James, one of the custodians of Water Lane, as they explore Jo’s plans for the transformation of the two-acre walled garden. Their joint ambition is to create a garden for all, combining recreation, dining, experiences, and education. During the event on 5 November, Jo will share the approach she and her team have taken to the brief of ‘making the garden fit for the 21st century whilst respecting its history of being a productive garden’. She will also lead a tour of the garden, along with Ian James, to highlight how the changes to the garden will take effect over the coming years.
Ian James from Water Lane says, “We are thrilled to be working with Jo Thompson and her team. She brings a sympathetic and holistic vision that marries with our plans for Water Lane, slowly bringing back the garden to its original purpose of growing fruit and vegetables. Water Lane is not a pastiche of a Victorian walled garden. We are respecting its roots, but we want the garden to be accessible to all and have many different functions. Our aim is to create a democratic place where people can come and learn and where skilled teachers can share their knowledge around horticulture, floral design, any kind of artisan craft and food.”
Jo Thompson says, “The extensive and long-term restoration vision for Water Lane, led by Nick Selby and Ian James, is a garden designer’s absolute dream. I am excited to peel back the layers of this historic site and truly understand its history as a horticultural masterpiece. This is not just any restored walled garden project but a chance to re-imagine Water Lane the ‘place’, respecting its past glory as well as making it an inspirational and welcoming garden for the 21st century and beyond.”
-ends-
Address: Water Lane Walled Garden, Water Lane, Hawkhurst, Kent, TN18 5DH
Instagram: @water.lane
www.waterlane.net
About Water Lane
Water Lane is a two-acre walled garden with a vinery and Victorian glasshouses. A long-term restoration project over many years to come, the site is being managed by custodians Nick Selby and Ian James, who previously created and ran Melrose and Morgan, a grocery store and kitchen in North-West London. The site of Water Lane is a historical horticultural masterpiece with 13 Grade II Victorian glasshouses dating back to the 1800s on what was once the Tongswood Estate. Working alongside Jo Thompson Garden Design and RX Architects, the whole site is being sympathetically transformed into a productive garden with 72 no-dig vegetable and cut flower beds for the restaurant and wholesale to local florists, stock and trial beds, restored vinery, outside spaces and a pavilion for dining and events.
The plans will progress in phases and will include a rose ‘orchard’ with bulb meadow; a quince tree avenue through the green gates of the pedestrian entrance; perennial and stock beds in the south quadrant; follies and wall borders, a fruit cage pergola; children’s natural play; a forest garden and sculpture trail, nuttery and educational spaces.
About Jo Thompson
Jo’s designs are wide ranging - from residential family gardens, historic landscapes, public spaces and country estates to restaurant roof gardens, rooftop terraces and urban boltholes. Other current projects include working with Iford Manor in Wiltshire and the restoration of Highgate Cemetery in London with Gustafson Porter + Bowman. Jo Thompson is a member of the RHS Gardens Committee and Garden Advisor for RHS Rosemoor, an RHS judge, as well as being a member of the RHS Show Gardens Selection Panel. She lectures both nationally and internationally and is a visiting tutor at the London College of Garden Design.