Local Heritage
Coventry is famous for it’s more traditional and local roots, through Lady Herbert’s Garden and
site of International friendship, to landmark monuments such as Lady Godiva and the
two Cathedrals. Through continual work
and advancements on the management and development of these sites, CV One, English Landscapes and Coventry Council
ensure that they are kept weed free, washed and painted all year round, making for a very pleasant experience for
both the residents and visitors alike. Techniques such as stone chipping and masonry improving, stained glass
cleaning, and monument jet washing all add to the cities sparkling history of being a clean and tidy place to
live and work.
Bonds Hospital was endowed by one Thomas Bond - Mayor of Coventry in 1497 - in his will of 1506 as
an alms house for deserving old men. It provided for ten men for life, each was to be a member of the Holy Trinity
Guild, and one woman to act as housekeeper. Fords Hospital, Blue Coat School and Lady Herbert’s Garden all operate
as a symbol of Coventry’s proud history and each is surrounded by well tended grounds and lawns. Links to local history are all over the city, with signage and boards revealing Coventry’s hidden past through
heritage site notices and attractions.
During the Heritage Open Days event in September, some of Coventry’s best
kept secrets open its doors to the public in a spectacular showing of local history and heritage, such as Drapers
House, Herbert underground and the Allesley Park Walled Garden, which attracts hundreds of people every year.
The Allesley Park Walled Garden Group is a voluntary group whose aim is to restore Allesley Park Walled Garden
as an authentic 18th century kitchen garden which is part of our local heritage, and to use it as an educational
resource for the people of Coventry. The group run a range of activities including heritage gardening sessions,
research into what would typically be found in a Georgian garden and eighteenth century recipes for fruit &
vegetables; there is also a shop on the third Saturday of every month (through May to October) selling vegetables,
honey, preserves and other homemade produce.
The Cook St Gate in the city centre is situated at the very top of
Lady Herbert’s Garden, standing tall next to the spectacular wonders of the spring cherry blossom trees.
Originally part of Coventry’s old historic wall, the Gate is one of a handful of entry points to the city, and
is a great lasting reminder of the once medieval display. With freshly mowed lawns, tidy hedgerows and perennials,
deciduous planting and stylish evergreen shrubs finishing off a perfect rockery that belongs to the ladies of the
bungalows nearby, this peacefully quaint area is in stark contrast to the
bustling city centre.
In January 2010 the Priory Garden Lawn was identified as needing some
lawn care and maintenance as the lawn was not flourishing due to
compaction and heavy footfall. The vicinity was fenced off to
restrict pedestrian access to enable the area to recover whilst the
process of scarifying, hollow tyning, top dressing, reseeding and
fertilising commenced.
Scarifying the lawn involves a bladed machine which removes any
thatch and moss from the lawn area, hollow tyning is the process of
aerating the soil by dropping probes into the sub surface. Top dressing
consisted of a sand and compost mix.
The old city wall has suffered from stones becoming dislodged mainly
through erosion over time. Coventry was given royal consent from King
Edward III in 1329 to build a wall which would surround the city. It was
started in the mid 1300s from the monies collected from local taxes and
took a staggering 180 years to complete. The wall was all but demolished
by King Charles II in 1662 leaving only the gates remaining.
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