Rock Garden

The Rock Garden was constructed in the early 1970s and was dedicated to the memory of Elizabeth Mottershead (1887 – 1969), wife of George Mottershead the founder of the zoo.

In 2003 it was decided the garden was in need of a make over. Very little development had taken place over the 30 years since its creation and many of the plants had become overgrown and past their best.

As part of the zoo’s long term plans, the Rock Garden comes within an area that has been designated as a geographic zone highlighting animals and plants from China.

The Red Panda enclosure was the first piece of this jigsaw to be put in place. Because of this zoning it was decided to re-develop the rock garden to reflect the enormous plant diversity of China and the Himalayan range.

The first section was re-landscaped and planted in 2004, and over the next few years we continued that work with the construction of a large new waterfall feature, a new pond and streams, and a bog garden.

Many of the plants used in the garden have been collected in the wild and grown from seed in the zoo’s nursery.

Today the results of the re-landscaping and planting can be seen and it means that the garden is once again a fitting tribute the founders of the zoo.