Chelsea garden’s new life in Devon

It is always good news to learn that a Chelsea garden is reincarnated after the show and visitors to the 2019 RHS Chelsea Flower Show who loved the moving and beautiful ‘Donkey’s Matter‘ garden will be delighted to know it has been relocated to Devon’s Jurassic coast.

Designed by Annie Prebensen and Christina Williams, the garden won the coveted ‘People’s Choice Award’ and a silver medal at the show in May. Now, the garden has been rebuilt at The Donkey Sanctuary international headquarters in Devon. It will be open to the public and like the Sanctuary will be free of charge to visitors.

The Chelsea garden celebrated 50 years of The Donkey Sanctuary’s work in transforming the lives of donkeys and mules. Through the generous support of a long-term donor, it was felt that a Chelsea garden was in keeping with the charity’s long-term vision of animal welfare, conservation and sustainability. The international charity is committed to building a legacy of donkey excellence in a sustainable green space for future generations.

Using water as its central theme, The Donkey Sanctuary’s artisan garden creates a narrative to illustrate the donkey’s journey from a wooden shelter through hot, dry landscapes to its place of work in agriculture of water collection. The garden demonstrates with a well and dripping bucket how owning a donkey means access to clean, fresh water for some of the poorest and most vulnerable communities in the world.

The planting of the garden suggests the dry Mediterranean climate including Mediterranean Sea Holly, Iris and Lavender. The colour palette is claret, purple and silver, with bright, vibrant flowers bringing beauty and colour to the garden’s harsh surroundings.

Visitors to The Donkey Sanctuary can buy similar plants to those featured in the garden, this summer, and they can also learn about conservation projects across the charity’s farms as well as it’s supported charities worldwide.

The Donkey Charity was founded by Dr Elisabeth Svendsen in 1969 and has since grown from a charity rescuing UK donkeys from neglect and abuse to an international animal welfare organisation transforming the lives of millions of donkeys and mules and the people who depend on them for their livelihood.

You can find out more information about the work of the Charity by visiting: https://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/

The Charity has UK locations at Sidmouth, Belfast, Birmingham, Ivybridge, Leeds and Manchester. The Chelsea garden has been re-sited at the Sidmouth headquarters of the Charity.

Photo images: All photographs are strictly ©The Donkey Sanctuary.