Extinction

In more detail

• The fuselage on loan from Air Salvage International, based at Cotswold Airport, gives the garden an authentic feel
• The field of wheat has actually come from an agricultural crop. Plants were dug up and replanted with spacing that would allow for a tractor to pass through

About the garden

This garden addresses the 6th mass extinction threat to our planet, caused by our continual exploitation and destruction of its natural resources and ancient ecosystems. Its purpose is to jolt people into both an understanding of the severity of the crisis and an appreciation of the scale of the behavioural change that we need to effect. We have always believed that such radical change in our lifestyles was too hard, but our recent response to the Covid-19 pandemic has shown that a radical change in behaviour is possible.

This recently crashed aircraft represents a paradox, being one of mankind’s notable achievements in technology, while contributing to climate change and the rapid spread of Covid-19.
 
The crash site of barley demonstrates another dichotomy, that our successful domestication of crop development during the agricultural revolution has ultimately been a source of weakness for our species, leaving us over-reliant on a small number of species and vulnerable to pests and diseases.

Through the door of the wreckage is a forest of ancient species – it existed long before humankind set foot on this planet – and will survive long after our own extinction. Could this be the jolt that will instil humility, hope and inspiration to save our natural world and our own species from mass extinction?

Also sponsored by: Wildflower Turf