SUSTAINABILITY

AROUND THE REGIONS
Hampshire
Institute of Naval Medicine
10
foxgloves, borage and camomile, but
also some more unusual ones
including betony pinks, lady’s
bedstraw, heartsease, sempervium and
redcurrant. All provide a great nectar
source for pollinators.
Restored INM pond taking shape © Wendy Lydiatt
Hidden in a far corner of Gosport by
the sea is the Institute of Naval
Medicine (INM). The original building,
Monckton House, dates back to 1854
and sits in eight acres of land with a
well established garden at the front of
this Grade 2 listed building. In
November 2013 a few workers
rediscovered a corner of INM hidden
behind the stores building that had a
neglected pond area and decided to
tidy it up. The INM ‘Ponders’, as they
came to be called, with the support of
the Medical Offcer in Charge, had a
team building day to clear the pond.
Frogs and plants were removed safely
so that a new pond liner could be put
in place. But that was just the
beginning. The initial idea of just doing
the pond area grew to creating a
whole garden.
INM has an affliation with the
Worshipful Company of Barber
Surgeons in London, which has a long
established medicinal garden. So it
was decided to create our own
medicinal garden, encompassing a
wildlife and quiet area.
Over the next 18 months there were
more team building afternoons, but
every week the INM Ponders were out
planting, painting, pruning, watering
and redesigning as new ideas came
into their heads. Plants were ‘Googled’
for their medicinal properties. INM staff
donated money, plants and
equipment. A couple of dead trees
around the site were cut down,
shredded then used to make a bark
path. Natural stones were used around
the pond area.
To help encourage wildlife, there is a
wild meadow grass area, a buddleia
plant for the butterflies, an insect house
and a bird box. There was frog spawn in
the pond but we think a heron spotted
by the pond may have dined out on it.
A pair of mallard ducks are regular
visitors, as are the dragonflies. We are
still waiting for a bird to take up
residence in the bird box. The garden is
now a festival of colour.
There are over 25 medicinal plants
including lavender, lemon balm,
evening primrose, feverfew, valerian,
The INM Medicinal Garden and Pond
Area was offcially opened on 12th
May 2015. In at tendance were the
families of some INM staff who have
sadly passed away and had donated
plants in their memory. The
Seconded Medical and Dental
Offcers (SMODOs) had donated
money for a bench in memor y of a
colleague who died in 2014.
The garden would not have been
possible without the generosit y of
INM staff, the SMODOs, the Royal
Navy and Royal Marines Charity
(RNRMC), and a team at HMS Sultan
who provided several plaques. Not to
forget all the hard work done by the
INM Ponders who will continue to
raise monies and maintain the garden
for all INM personnel.
Wendy Lydiatt
INM Ponder
Medicinal garden and pond area © Wendy Lydiatt
Sanctuary 44 • 2015 83