Narrative: Garden of England

Objective: Ebbsfleet’s agricultural heritage and Kent’s history of productive landscapes is integrated into the public realm to promote local food production and healthy living.

A high level review of the area’s historic maps and literature revealed a history of agriculture and productive landscapes. The history included areas of orchards and watercress beds in Swanscombe in the 1910 OS map (1). Additionally, references to cobnut platts and the growing of hops were found in local tithe records. As the site of Ebbsfleet Garden City was originally part of the productive multi-functional agricultural landscape of “The Garden of England,” it is important to recognise this history in the design of the public realm.

A summary of potential ways to incorporate this theme into the public realm is as follows:

• The integration of multi-functional productive landscapes into neighbourhood parks and city parks in line with the Edible Ebbsfleet Initiative.

• The planting of orchards of cherry and apple trees, inter-planted with soft fruit in soft landscape areas. Size or shape of fruit trees can be specified to suit public realm. E.g. Espaliered fruit could be used to form low boundaries in soft landscape areas

• Adapting the traditional hop gardens or hops trellis to fit within the public realm

• The integration of rain gardens into the public realm to build upon the site’s heritage of an innovative watercress farm at Springhead

• The planting of cobnut (hazel nut) platts or the planting of multi-stem trees within the soft landscape.

• The use of the agricultural pattern of predominantly rectangular shape and associated rhythm of sparse hedgerows, orchards and shelter-belts.

• Visual reference to traditional orchards with ornamental flowering trees in hard paved areas & streets.