Leeds goes to Chelsea

Following a successful partnership with sponsors HESCO Bastion in 2009, which led to an impressive Silver Gilt Flora award at the Royal Horticultural Society's flagship event for gardening, the same team returns to Chelsea this year with "The HESCO Garden 2010", themed around celebrating the green links which connect the city centre to the countryside in and around Leeds, as well as the importance of protecting the local environment and raising awareness of the proven health benefits green spaces provide.

To demonstrate this, the team have chosen a snapshot of the Leeds-Liverpool canal as the basis for the design, with the centrepiece being a lock gate which will allow water to run through it and into the canal. This is then flanked by three distinct sections – woodland, wetland and a floral meadow – which can all be found in green spaces in Leeds.

The Leeds-Liverpool Canal is the longest canal in northern England, 127 miles long and passing through 91 locks. It was built over 46 years, starting in 1765 when businessmen proposed a link from Leeds to Preston to transport woollen goods and limestone. It was then developed to run to Liverpool and throughout the 19th century was used as a key route for transporting of stone, coal and a variety of other goods.

Its influence declined when railways and roads were developed and its commercial use largely ended in 1964. Since then its popularity has grown again with a range of leisure activities being carried out on the canal.

The HESCO Garden 2010 has been designed and created by Leeds City Council's Parks and Countryside Service with engineering design and support being supplied by HESCO Bastion Limited, a Leeds-based company who are world-leading manufacturers of products used in civil engineering.

Maintaining the Yorkshire flavour, the garden will be produced using locally-sourced materials, with all the plants and flowers being grown in Leeds and HESCO products providing the structural framework for the garden.

The HESCO Garden 2010 will be on show at Chelsea from May 25-29 in the elite show garden category alongside gardens designed by some of the biggest names in the horticulture industry.

Leeds City Council executive member for Leisure, Councillor John Procter said: "In terms of raising the profile of Leeds as a city to an international audience, being at Chelsea brings massive benefits."

Leeds City Council has enjoyed great success at Chelsea in recent years, with all seven previous gardens dating back to the first, in 1997, earning bronze or silver category awards. Four of these gardens can now be visited by the public at sites around the city.

YP MAG 1/5/10