Plants create first stage of tribute to nursery that one rivalled Kew

More than 300 plants spanning 65 varieties from alpine locations across the world are being introduced this week in the Museum Gardens' rockery, which was originally created by Askham Bryan College students in 1980.

The new-look rockery near the Marygate entrance will be stocked by one of the UK's top 10 alpine growers, Slack Top Nursery, near Hebden Bridge, which is owned by a former Askham Bryan student, Michael Mitchell.

The display will be temporary before a much larger rockery is created to honour the famous Victorian Backhouse Nursery in York between 1815 and 1955.

The manager of the Museum Gardens, Sjaak Kastelijn, said: "In its time, Backhouse Nursery was one of the most influential and famous nurseries in the country. It helped make the rockery a popular feature in many gardens and we thought it would be nice to honour this important and often forgotten part of York's heritage."

The nursery was created by Quaker James Backhouse, whose son, also called James, helped popularise rockeries among Victorians. The 100-acre site was bigger than Kew Gardens.