Creating New Landscapes for Port Sunlight

Our landscape team introduce two new visions for areas of green space in the village, both with sustainability, people and nature at their heart.

‘Miniature woodlands’ on the Church Drive Field

The Church Drive Field has for many years acted as a fast-growing screen for the rear of the houses on Jubilee Crescent, with Balsam Poplars along one edge, Conifers along another and Lombardy Poplars on the road edge. However, as with all green spaces, we’ve begun to see it change.

When the conifers were removed, we were able to replace them with a mixed native hedge and mixed tree species such as Elms and Ornamental Cherries. This greatly improved the available food sources and habitats for wildlife, with the healthy Balsam Poplars and hawthorn hedge on another boundary providing even more opportunity for shelter and food.

The Lombardy Poplars sadly had to be removed in 2022 when they became unsafe, but it presented us with another opportunity to further improve this area and create a hotspot for supporting local biodiversity.

The key to supporting as much life as possible, in a sustainable way, is to plant a diverse range of native trees and shrubs. This involves creating a canopy of taller trees, an understory of smaller trees and large shrubs, and a ground layer of smaller plants, grasses, ferns and wildflowers.

Rather than a single species avenue planted within grassland as was done previously, in 2023, we created seven miniature woodland, each one containing large sheltering trees (such as oak, birch and larch), smaller fruiting trees (such as holly, rowan and wild cherry) and a ground layer (viburnum, honey suckle, native ferns and wildflowers). The centre of the field has been left clear for the community to enjoy.

The creation of these new habitats will be done in stages to allow for proper establishment and to allow us to see which trees and shrubs will bring the most benefit to the wildlife that makes its home in Port Sunlight and the surrounding area.

Planting the Elizabeth Garden

In the south area of the Diamond, a new garden has been created for Port Sunlight’s residents and visitors to enjoy.

It began with Senior Gardener Nicky Evans undertaking training with Michael Marriott, who was responsible for rose breeding at David Austen Roses and designed the distinctive planting scheme through the Diamond.

Part of the training involved designing a rose garden, combining herbaceous plants with roses. Nicky loved formal planting schemes, so this played a big part in her final design. She later used it for inspiration for developing the south section of the Diamond.

The new planting scheme combines topiary and strong lines with the softness of the Elizabeth rose, Duke of Edinburgh rose, and an array of herbaceous perennials in shades of red, white and blue.

Following the passing of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, the colours of the garden pay tribute to her and so will its name – the Elizabeth Garden. Not only will this area be a paradise for bees and butterflies, but its highly scented flowers will help provide a calm area for people to sit and relax in nature for many years to come.

A growing collection

There are at least 2,000 items in our historic collection and archive, however there is likely much more as a significant amount of the items are still being catalogued. We are also continually collecting and acquiring objects that meet our aims of telling the ongoing story of Port Sunlight.