I had a great but tiring day at Canterbury Cathedral last Monday (25 April)*
The talk gave a good general background to plants at the Cathedral and beyond and I was so pleased to see the historical global connections for sources of plants emphasised – i.e. North American species in Britain from the 13thC. The Cathedral have a nice project to build up their herbs garden and have started a collection of magnolias, including rare ones. There was also a nice emphasis on the importance of sharing. Gardening is a wonderful metaphor for the values we need to highlight now, in these conflicted times.
A visit to the archives has given me a prompt to visit again if and when I get my funding for gardens and the ecology of care or “What should we do but tend?“. It was mainly medical men who created the early Herbals (guides to herbs), which fits nicely.
In the afternoon I joined in the printmaking session and it was good fun. Not only did I learn something about getting the ink onto the plants neatly, I also got to catch up with workshop leader and printmaker, Dawn Cole, who I usually have to wave hello to at crowded events with a promise to catch up soon. So 1 year later we actually did.
*Programme:
Join us for a day exploring gardening history at Canterbury Cathedral and developing print-making skills with a local artist. In the morning, the Cathedral’s Head Gardener, Philip Oostenbrink will give an illustrated talk on the history of the Cathedral’s gardens. This will be followed by a visit to the Archives and Library to enjoy collections relating to plants and gardening. After a two-course hot lunch in the Refectory Restaurant at the Cathedral Lodge, Dawn Cole will lead a print-making workshop inspired by the Cathedral’s collections.
Due to popular demand, there is another date on 29 July
