Nantwich Walled Garden as a Visitor Attraction
Nantwich is a town with many attractive features which make it a lovely place to live and visit. The Town Council organise a range of events for the local community and tourists, with knock-on benefits to local businesses. If the NWG could be restored as a garden, this would only enhance our town further – the garden would be a unique attraction as there is nothing similar in Nantwich open to the public.
Although there are many delightful walled gardens around the country, there are very few which are in such close proximity to a town centre. To visit most you need a car, whereas the location of the Nantwich Walled Garden close to Welsh Row means that it could easily be reached from the railway and bus stations, on foot by local residents, and even from the canal (for visitors arriving by boat). If the Nantwich Walled Garden can be acquired, the Nantwich Walled Garden Society would work to restore the walls and garden, and develop it as a tourist attraction. This would be in addition to its objective to involve local schools, colleges, community groups and members of the public.
If the garden and walls can be restored, our plan would be for it to be a tribute to John Gerard so that his contributions to botany and herbs, and his connections with Nantwich, can be commemorated. This would doubtless attract national and international visitors with interests in herbs, botany and Elizabethan history, as well as gardeners and visitors here for other reasons.