AN OPEN garden weekend at a New Forest care home has raised £700 for nursing and health charities.
Colten Care’s Woodpeckers in Brockenhurst welcomed more than 60 visitors over two days under the National Garden Scheme.
It was the latest in a series of open garden events at the operator’s homes this summer, with both Brook View in West Moors and Kingfishers in New Milton also hosting NGS days.
On view at Woodpeckers were dahlias, crocosmias, rudbeckias, cherry trees, a courtyard, a bug house, a wooden chainsaw sculpture, a small orchard and a wheelchair-friendly woodland trail with views through to neighbouring New Forest fields.
As at the other Colten Care homes, Woodpeckers residents helped prepare for the NGS days through gentle gardening activities under the guidance of care companions and gardeners.
Companionship Team Leader Jane Bunker said: “It gives us a sense of pride opening our garden up to the public.
“We invite them to share what a beautiful setting we get to work in every day, and to experience what a tranquil place in the heart of the New Forest that our residents get to call home.”
The NGS provides access to thousands of private gardens in the UK each year, raising funds for nursing and health charities through admissions and the sales of afternoon teas.
Woodpeckers resident Pat Spring Smyth is pictured promoting the Brockenhurst home’s NGS open garden weekend with Colten Care gardener Ben Dawson.