Gertrude Jekyll's garden designs unearthed

Recently unearthed plans of a garden designed by Gertrude Jekyll have been preserved and donated to go on display.

The plans for Warren Hurst in Ashtead, which have been donated to the Surrey History Centre in Woking, were thought to be lost, but have been discovered in a book about the famous garden designer.

The plans, which include a rough pencil copy of one of Jekyll's designs and a tracing by the architect, will be added to the centre's collection of items from the Godalming designer.

Surrey County Council's deputy leader, Denise Turner Stewart, said: "Gertrude Jekyll's work continues to inspire and educate, and we are thrilled to preserve and share these historical documents with the public."

Other plans of the garden feature in the designer's collection at the University of California, but the new documents were more detailed, the council said.

"These documents offer a fascinating insight into [Ms] Jekyll's methods and types of plants and shrubs," a council spokesperson said.

The centre's conservator, with funding from the Surrey Gardens Trust, preserved the plans with surface cleaning, light humidification and flattening to remove creases and repairing torn or fragile areas using wheat starch paste.

The plans will go on display on Saturday.

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