Join our gardens sponsorship scheme and play a vital part in supporting the ongoing development of the gardens, plants and animals that call Ordsall Hall their home.
Whether it’s an individual plant you choose to sponsor, a garden object or even just a tiny seed, our sponsorship scheme is a great way to support the gardens and give a unique and ethical gift. Your gift will play a huge part in keeping the gardens beautiful for years to come!
What will your sponsorship support?
* Maintenance and expansion of the plant collections and unique specimens at Ordsall Hall. We grow a huge range of plants from wildflowers to specimen trees and herbaceous plants.
* Conservation of rare heritage seed. Ordsall Hall works in partnership with the Garden Organic Heritage Seed Library to grow, save and conserve some of our most endangered and unique heritage vegetable varieties.
* Restoration and maintenance of objects such as our beautiful garden art works, cattle trough or stone artefacts.
* Maintenance and nurturing of our garden areas, including the wildlife-friendly wildflower area, Tudor style Knot garden and Medieval Herb garden.
* Care of the amazing wildlife that likes to call Ordsall Hall it’s home- from Lapwings, Water Boatmen, Heron to Canada Geese.
How it works
1. Choose what you would like to sponsor from the four options below, for instance;
· An individual plant, such as one of our beautiful Roses or striking Cardoon.
· A garden area- whether you want to help develop our wildflower patch, look after our Orchard or our Tudor Knot garden, there are plenty of garden areas to choose from.
· A garden object- from our wonderful Trough, which houses a whole host of amazing water insects, to our fantastic artworks created especially for the Hall.
· An animal- we have so much wonderful wildlife here at the Hall, including many bird species, Bats and intriguing insects. Your gift will help maintain and create habitats for wildlife and provide a safe and secure place for them to live and breed.
2. Make your donation, leave a comment to let us know what you wish to sponsor and tick the option 'allow the charity to contact me'. We’ll send out your sponsorship gift pack which includes a photograph of your chosen plant, animal or object, as well as a certificate and information pack. We can send this directly to you or to a recipient of your choice.
3. Your sponsorship will last one year and will continue to help us maintain and develop the gardens here at the Hall. We’ll give you regular updates on your plant, seed or object and you’ll even be invited to special workshops and garden tours.
Option one: Sponsor a Garden area for £30
The Coppice - Coppicing is a traditional method of producing timber. Our Coppice contains approximately 30 Hazel trees, under planted with Bluebells, Wild Garlic and other herbaceous plants to encourage wildlife.
Wildflower patch - This is one of our most recent additions to the garden and includes a wide range of nectar rich plant species loved by bees and other pollinators, such as Corn Cockle, Knapweed, Forget-me-not and Red Campion.
Orchard- A common feature of a Medieval garden, our Orchard has some delicious varieties of heritage fruit trees including Pear 'Black Worcester' and Apple 'Howgate Wonder'. It also contains some more unusual fruits such as our Medlar trees and Quince bushes.
Knot garden- The Knot garden was a popular garden feature in Tudor times, designed to be looked upon from above. At Ordsall we have created our own twist on the traditional style, incorporating our famous Quatrefoils in a design planted with Santolina, Box hedging and Wall Germander.
WW1 Allotment - In 2015 we recreated a WW1 allotment as part of the First World War centenary commemorations. On the allotment we grow varieties used during the war years 1914-1918, many of which are rare or in need of conservation.
Option two: Sponsor an object for £20
Garden Artworks- These include 'Timeline', an art work located in the Time Garden and developed by Lesley Fallais, reflecting the social change at the Hall over the past 800 years and 'Swans', a work located in the original moat created by John Kennedy. We also have our resident sculpted Horse near to the allotment, created by Angela Sidwell to celebrate the relationship between the people of Ordsall Hall's past and their animals.
Stone Artefacts
Stone Trough
Option three: Sponsor a plant for £15
Cardoon Cynara cardunculus - Our huge thistle type plant is grown for it's large, edible flower buds and architectural presence.
Rose Rosa ‘De Rescht’ - This is a beautiful antique Rose, with an intense Damask fragrance, Crimson flowers and Gallica type foliage.
Rose Rosa ‘Reine des Violettes’ - Another stunning Heritage Rose, with a strong old Rose fragrance.
Black Mulberry Morus nigra - The Mulberry has Royal associations going all the way back to Tudor times. Mulberry trees are beautifully ornamental and produce purplish-black sweet and juicy fruit fit for kings and queens!
Medlar Mespilus germanica - As well as having ornamental blossom in spring, our two Medlar trees produce unusual but very tasty fruit late in the season. Their fruit is tart if eaten raw but makes delicious jellies and syrups.
Lavender Lavandula angustifolia - Filling the perimeter with scent and color in Summer, our Lavender provides a welcome sight to staff and visitors and to bees!
Option four: Sponsor an animal for £10
Water Boatman - These little critters are a recent inhabitant of the gardens, having set up home in our stone cattle trough! This brown bug, which provides vital food for other wildlife, gets its name from it's long, oar-like legs that help it swim!
Lapwings - Also know as the peewit, Lapwings are a distinctive bird with a black and white appearance. We have been lucky enough to have a breeding pair and their offspring here at the Hall in 2014 and 2015, enjoying the short vegetation and grassy areas. Sadly, due to habitat loss, this lovely bird is now a Red list species and needs our help.
Canada Goose - We've had large numbers of this attractive looking Goose visiting us over the last few years. They love the wetter areas of the lawn, feeding on grubs and vegetation! They have even become a welcome part of the garden team, feeding on weeds!
Bats - We have had a number of sightings of these nocturnal visitors. We plan to develop habitat areas to attract more Bats to the Hall over the next year, as well as introducing a mix of night-scented wildflowers such as night catch-fly, corn chamomile, fleabane and vipers bugloss to attract insects for bats to eat.
Pollinators - With many species of Bees and other pollinating insects such as Butterflies on the decline, we want to ensure that Ordsall Hall Gardens is playing a part in increasing the food supply for these amazing and important creatures. The development of pollinator friendly wildflower areas will be a key focus for us over the coming years.
Heron - This majestic bird has been a much loved visitor to the garden on many occasions, usually hanging out near to our Coppice area, possibly looking for rodents to eat.
Please note that sponsorship of any item does not confer any actual ownership of that item on the sponsor.
At Ordsall Hall, we need your help to preserve, promote and provide access to culture for everyone. We rely on gifts of all sizes from trusts and foundations, organisations and individual people to keep our doors open and to preserve Ordsall Hall for the next generations.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
