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Gardens Through Time

Our Gardens Through Time show how city gardens have developed over the centuries.

From a Tudor knot garden to a modern green roof, our gardens echo changes in society and the wider world and show the fashions and innovations of the time.

Many urban homes only have a small garden, if one at all. Gardens are often multipurpose spaces for practical purposes and leisure activities.

Gardens have always been key to creating a feeling of home and connecting people to their environment.

Our Gardens Through Time

Sage plants

Herb garden

Herbs for medicine, cosmetics, bees, fragrance and food.

Herb garden
Detail of the santolina plant with grey leaves

Knot garden

Designed to be seen from above, the pattern is inspired by interior decorations.

Knot garden
Raised beds with green foliage and gravel pathways

Functional and practical

Designed to be useful, in the 1600s people used their outdoor space to carry out household tasks.

Functional and practical garden
Green yew leaves in front of a brick wall

Leisurely and neat

A garden for relaxing, but very neatly kept.

Leisurely and neat garden
Pink and white heart shaped flowers against a brick background

Bold and colourful

A passion for gardening exploded in the 1800s with carpet bedding and glorious colour.

Bold and colourful garden
Purple wisteria flowers on a green plant

Cottage style garden

As a reaction to the rigid Victorian style, gardens became increasingly informal.

Cottage style garden
A green roof with yucca plants growing

Green roof

Designed for the future, gardening in climate crisis.

Green roof