Update on our ‘Adopted’ Chelsea Garden

The Great Wall of Otley

© Kate Dundas

It’s March, the sun is shining in Leeds so spring must be on its way and the Art of Yorkshire garden is lifting off the page and into a field in Otley. Yes, a field in Otley. This is because the drystone wall design for the garden is so intricate that the contractors have built a full-size mock-up in plywood so we can see how it fits together.

We are using three different widths of stone within the wall to create flowing lines, which will represent the rolling Yorkshire landscape. Reclaimed slate coping will create a contrast with the yorkstone, with the slate cut and shaped by hand. It’s fast becoming a series of mini-sculptures with each stone giving loving attention regarding its placing and how it looks. The mock up gives us a great idea of the scale of the wall, the strung window and how it will look as a backdrop to the planting. We made some minor adjustments to the size of the sheep creep, but other than that it was looking great. Notice the essentials of hammer, tape and tea in one of the photos! The stone is now being cut and packed into crates depending on its size, these crates will be taken down to be Chelsea, where the wall will be recreated like a giant jigsaw.