Take a look around the newly opened Promontory Garden, Battersea Park

Take a walk in or towards Battersea Park across the Thames at Albert Bridge this Spring and you will spot a stunning new landscape: the Promontory Garden.  Completed in January 2018 and officially opened in February, the Garden has been constructed and planted to the award-winning design by David Keary of Leicestershire-based Keary Design Associates.

The Official Unveiling: The Promontory Garden, Battersea Park

Wednesday 28 February saw the official opening of The Promontory Garden, Battersea Park. Wandsworth Council’s Community spokesperson, Councillor Jonathan Cook attended along with David Keary, members of the Friends of Battersea Park and representatives of Enable Leisure and Culture, braving the chilly weather to walk through the garden they helped visualise, materialise and fund.

The Event in the north-west corner of the park celebrated The Promontory being made accessible to the public for the first time in over 30 years.

The Garden has taken shape over the past three months, funded by Wandsworth Council and generous donations from the Friends of Battersea Park at a total cost of just over £100,000.

“Battersea Park has always been a favourite of mine – I was drawn to its eclectic blend of styles and rich heritage.” – David Keary, award-winning Landscape Designer of the Promontory Garden

Seeing the Garden completed, David said: “Battersea Park has always been a favourite of mine – I was drawn to its eclectic blend of styles and rich heritage. Seeing my design become a living landscape on the banks of the Thames is a fantastic experience. The garden, with its plants and walkways, sympathetic to the Park’s Victorian design style – will open up a stunning outlook across the park, the River and Albert Bridge.”

Reflecting the park’s Victorian Heritage

David’s design for The Promontory Garden was the winner of the Battersea Park Promontory Design Competition organised by The Landscape Show in association with the Society of Garden Designers, of which he is a Registered Member. Construction commenced in November 2017 and was completed in January 2018 by Blakedown Landscapes.

The new garden provides access to seating and unique views across the River Thames, in particular offering an impressive vantagepoint of Albert Bridge. The design acknowledges the Victorian heritage of Battersea Park and successfully overcame the challenges of working around existing large trees and uneven levels through incorporating sculptured-mounds and sweeping paths. The planting includes a number of low-growing and shade-tolerant species that will resist the cold winter winds currently coming off the Thames.

The garden offers great spring and summer promise, with a colourful array of shrubs, grasses, ferns and herbaceous perennials, along with a cluster of Japanese maples occupying the centre of the garden.

The Plant Palette: The Promontory Garden