The National Gardens Scheme is an award scheme in England and Wales. It was founded in 1927 in England with the aim of "opening gardens of quality, character and interest to the public for charity". Originally, the money was raised to provide pension support for district nurses; 609 private gardens were opened and £8,191 was raised.
Over time, other charities were included in the scheme. In 1948, the new National Health Service took over the paying of pensions to district nurses, and in 1980, the National Gardens Scheme Charitable Trust was launched, with Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother as patron. The current patron is Charles, Prince of Wales. The gardens open to the public under the scheme are listed each year in publication called "The Yellow Book". The scheme has raised over £40 million since it began, and over half a million garden visits occur each year.
The National Gardens Scheme is featured in a Twofour produced BBC2 programme Open Gardens.
Famous quotes containing the words national, gardens and/or scheme:
“Being a gentleman is the number one priority, the chief question integral to our national life.”
—Edward Fox (b. 1934)
“the men
Leaving the gardens tidy,
The thousands of marriages
Lasting a little while longer:
Never such innocence again.”
—Philip Larkin (1922–1985)
“The real security of Christianity is to be found in its benevolent morality, in its exquisite adaptation to the human heart, in the facility with which its scheme accommodates itself to the capacity of every human intellect, in the consolation which it bears to the house of mourning, in the light with which it brightens the great mystery of the grave.”
—Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800–1859)