A NEW LOOK FOR SALISBURY CATHEDRAL'S BEAUTIFUL CLOISTER GARDEN

Extensive works to transform the beautiful cloister garden (garth) at Salisbury Cathedral will begin in March and be completed by Easter thanks to an anonymous donation from a keen horticulturalist with a particular interest in medieval history.

Canon Chancellor Edward Probert said, “We have long wanted to carry out this important work on the cloister garth but have not had the financial resources for a complete makeover like this. Chapter wishes to express its thanks to Stephanie Bulman whose hard work with limited financial resources has so improved the appearance of the area in recent years. Subject to necessary approvals and permissions, the new garden will be simple but beautiful and the best possible counterpoint to the marvellous Gothic architecture which surrounds it. We are extremely grateful to our Canadian donor whose generosity will enable us to raise and level the grass area as well as simplify the planting. The raised grass will help to protect the hundreds of graves which over the years have become perilously close to ground level. A low box hedge will be planted around the edge of the garth replacing the shrubs and flowers planted in recent years which have grown so much that they now obscure both the garth and stonework as well as reducing natural light into the cloister walkways.”

Tim Tatton-Brown, the Cathedral’s Archaeologist, said, “We don’t know if the garth had a function by the time the cloisters were completed in 1266 or whether it was simply a large and decorative open space, or had a little garden in it. Certainly the cloisters, the largest in 13th century Britain and quite elaborate with their great stone vaulted ceilings, were built as a status symbol of the Cathedral’s great wealth at the time. The garth was probably used as a graveyard in the Middle Ages but what we do know is that the real change came in the mid-19th century, after the cloisters were restored, and all burials in The Close became concentrated into the garth. Today it is still a working churchyard for the Cathedral and treated with great respect by all those who visit.”

In addition to the surface being raised and levelled, the marker stones will be raised and re-set in a newly laid lawn of heavy wear resistant grass. The families and descendants of those interred in the garth can be assured that every care will be taken to set their marker stones properly in the new turf. The existing plants around the garth will be lifted and sold and funds raised will go towards the care and upkeep of the new garden. ‘Grasscrete’ will be laid in the shape of a gothic arch at the entrance, located in the East Cloister. The donation also covers the cost of the critical few months following the works, after which the simplicity of the new garden will ensure that the maintenance requirements will be low.