Bennetts Water Gardens
Encyclopedia
Bennetts Water Gardens is an 8 acres (32,374.9 m²) garden in Chickerell
, near Weymouth, Dorset
, in southern England
. It holds national and international collections of water lilies
which flower from late May through to September. The plants are diplayed in a series of ponds and lakes. A main feature of the garden is a blue Japan
ese bridge built in 1999 to celebrate 100 years since Claude Monet
painted his famous piece Water Lily Pond 1899.
The site was originally a clay pit as far back as 1859. Oxford Clay
was dug by hand from the ground for brickmaking. Today a museum
on the site details this local history
including; Chickerell
village, which is mentioned in the Domesday Book
; Chesil Beach
and The Fleet lagoon.
). The scheme is organised by the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
(NCCPG) to support organisations in documenting, developing and preserving comprehensive collections of cultivated plants in the United Kingdom. This collection is one of three in the United Kingdom specialising in hardy water lilies.
Chickerell
Chickerell is a small town and parish in the West Dorset district of Dorset, England. The parish has a population of 5,282 .-History:Although Roman remains have been found, indicating that there has been settlement in the area for many years, as a modern town, Chickerell is recent and one of...
, near Weymouth, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, in southern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It holds national and international collections of water lilies
Nymphaeaceae
Nymphaeaceae is a family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called water lilies and live in freshwater areas in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains eight genera. There are about 70 species of water lilies around the world. The genus...
which flower from late May through to September. The plants are diplayed in a series of ponds and lakes. A main feature of the garden is a blue Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese bridge built in 1999 to celebrate 100 years since Claude Monet
Claude Monet
Claude Monet was a founder of French impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. . Retrieved 6 January 2007...
painted his famous piece Water Lily Pond 1899.
The site was originally a clay pit as far back as 1859. Oxford Clay
Oxford Clay
The Oxford Clay Formation is a Jurassic marine sedimentary rock formation underlying much of southeast England, from as far west as Dorset and as far north as Yorkshire. The Oxford Clay is of middle Callovian to lower Oxfordian age and comprises 2 main facies. The lower facies comprises the...
was dug by hand from the ground for brickmaking. Today a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
on the site details this local history
Local history
Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context and it often concentrates on the local community. It incorporates cultural and social aspects of history...
including; Chickerell
Chickerell
Chickerell is a small town and parish in the West Dorset district of Dorset, England. The parish has a population of 5,282 .-History:Although Roman remains have been found, indicating that there has been settlement in the area for many years, as a modern town, Chickerell is recent and one of...
village, which is mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
; Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach
Chesil Beach, sometimes called Chesil Bank, in Dorset, southern England is one of three major shingle structures in Britain. Its toponym is derived from the Old English ceosel or cisel, meaning "gravel" or "shingle"....
and The Fleet lagoon.
NCCPG National Plant Collection of Nymphaea
The gardens are home to a National Plant Collection of Nymphaea (Water LilyNymphaeaceae
Nymphaeaceae is a family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called water lilies and live in freshwater areas in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains eight genera. There are about 70 species of water lilies around the world. The genus...
). The scheme is organised by the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
The National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens , also known as Plant Heritage, is a botanical conservation organisation in the United Kingdom and a registered charity. It was founded in 1978 to combine the talents of botanists, horticulturalists and conservationists with the...
(NCCPG) to support organisations in documenting, developing and preserving comprehensive collections of cultivated plants in the United Kingdom. This collection is one of three in the United Kingdom specialising in hardy water lilies.