Stones Place Care Home

Green Synergy was commissioned to undertake a significant green spaces improvement for The Stones Place Care Home gardens which is situated off Skellingthorpe Road, Lincoln and the gardens and green spaces surround the care home to the front, side and rear of the home. The home is managed by Methodist Homes (MHA) who are a registered charity care provider for older people in the UK. They offer a variety of services, including residential care, dementia care, and retirement living schemes. The gardens were structured but a little untidy and significantly overgrown site in places and required a phased approach to restoration and management based on the appropriate growing seasons.

Project Outputs

Throughout the course of the 8-month project the following outputs were delivered:

  • 32 garden delivery sessions incorporating 108 delivery hours.
  • 6585 bulbs were plated on site
  • 747 plants were planted on site
  • 8 cubic tonnes of organic compost was applied on site
  • 2 cubic tonnes of organic topsoil was applied on site
  • 5 cubic tonnes of organic bark mulch
  • 2 hanging baskets installed
  • 2 seated arbour and 1 planted bench seat installed on site
  • 3 large planters were installed at the front of the care home

Trellis Area: Adjacent to the fishpond area was two trellises which have very small amount of planting in front of it and significant overhang from overgrown shrubs and trees. The grass has not taken in front of the area and carries high degrees of moss. Green Synergy dug out and created a new trellis bed planted with perennials, spring and summer bulbs, mulched with compost and bark mulch and the trellis was painted to match the new arbours.

 

Front of care home planters, shrubs and beds: New hanging baskets were installed at the front of the care home to improve the outlook of the front of the care home and provide a welcoming environment. A new bird table to replace the old broken bird table was created by our veterans at the charity and installed on site and it did attract a little visitor regularly whilst we were on site.

        

         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three new large planters: To improve and soften the front of the care home, three large rectangular planters were built, painted and installed on site. Painted to complement the colour scheme on site with the arbour and trellis in a soft willow green, three planters were then filled with organic compost and planted up with an array of winter, then spring plants and bulbs to provide yar around colour.

     

 Two New Arbours for Seating Area: Two new arbours were procured and built and installed onsite surrounding the old pond to provide residents with additional shelter seating areas and to complement the colour scheme through the garden and the garden furniture and planters.

During the course of our delivery sessions, it was so lovely to get very nice and positive feedback from the care home residents who welcomed the additional seating and, the work being done.

 New Bench Seating with Planters: To aid the residents to access additional seating around the focal point of the old fishpond and create a social gathering feel, Green Synergy procured, built and installed a new bench seating with planters to enhance the frontage of the care home near the pond. The planters were then planted initially with an array of spring plants and bulbs and then summer plants were added once the bulbs had gone over to provide longevity of flowering

New Dove Bed: the overgrown and undefined flower bed on the front lawn with the dove memorial in it was completely dug out, existing memorial plants retained and multiple perennial plants and spring and summer bulbs planted and mulched with bark.

    

 The Fountain Bed: This flower bed with the bird bath fountain in it was badly overgrown, covered in weeds and moss and the small trees and shrubs required significant pruning to enable new growth to come forward. The flower bed was completely re-shaped, dug out, weeded and re-edged. The small shrubs and trees were given a hard prune and shape in the autumn which allowed them to flourish in the spring. The flower bed then had seasonal and perennial plants and perennials planted and spring and summer bulbs to provide all year-round colour for the residents near the home frontage. The bed was then layered with compost media and woodchip to aid moisture retention.

                                                             

Before                                                                   Spring

Summer 2026

Woodland Bed: One of the largest elements to the green space improvement project at the care home was the restoration of the woodland bed. The woodland bed was riddled with weeds, very badly overgrown along with significant overhang from the adjacent trees which would need some pruning and heavy leaf drop that had not been cleared over a number of seasons. This did provide moisture and habitats, so we were conscious of these elements in the work undertaken.

 

Before                                                                 January 2026             

                   The large, long oval bed was completely dug out and redefined with purposeful shaping and the redefinition enabled us to plan out and plant shrubs, perennials suitable for a partial woodland area but also a bed that in parts received a lot of sun. The bed had the weeds dug out over the whole bed and replanting commenced on the whole bed. Large scale shrubs, shade loving plants, heathers, large quantities of spring, summer and autumn bulbs have been planted and considerable number of perennials and seasonal planting.

The beds were planted with a significant quantity of winter hardy plants including hellebores, heathers, ferns, primroses, wood anemones and bluebells as well as spring bulbs and native woodland plants and summer perennials such as Aquilegia, (columbine), as they in partial shade and well-drained, moist soil.

Fishpond Area: By far the largest undertaking of the project was the complete transformation of the old fish on into a planted central feature and focal point for the front of the care home. From the front hard surface surrounding a former fishpond was partially emptied and fish removed when we came onsite. Throughout the build there was significant ant activity on the hard standing area so something to be aware of as those ants bite!

Before                                     During                                       Infilled

As the pond had not been cleared of the stagnant water, our team had to undertake this task which took much longer than anticipated. Once drained, layers of cardboard, branches and twigs from site, mulch and green arising were laid in layers with another layer of cardboard to aid long term moisture retention. The build up of the planting level then commenced with organic compost layers and then the initial planting of the spring bulbs that will germinate for next spring. Layers in a bulb lasagne were then planted with both spring and summer bulbs and then two layers of topsoil mixed with compost with summer bulbs and then the final seasonal companion planting with a mixture of hardy miniature shrubs, perennials and fragranced plants alongside four David Austin fragranced rose bushes..

Planting in progress                                        Complete

 

A very happy Emma- Care Home Manager    An equally happy Green Synergy team

Stones Place Care Home

Community, Gardens / By

Green Synergy was commissioned to undertake a significant green spaces improvement for The Stones Place Care Home gardens which is situated off Skellingthorpe Road, Lincoln and the gardens and green spaces surround the care home to the front, side and rear of the home. The home is managed by Methodist Homes (MHA) who are a registered charity care provider for older people in the UK. They offer a variety of services, including residential care, dementia care, and retirement living schemes. The gardens were structured but a little untidy and significantly overgrown site in places and required a phased approach to restoration and management based on the appropriate growing seasons.

Project Outputs

Throughout the course of the 8-month project the following outputs were delivered:

  • 32 garden delivery sessions incorporating 108 delivery hours.
  • 6585 bulbs were plated on site
  • 747 plants were planted on site
  • 8 cubic tonnes of organic compost was applied on site
  • 2 cubic tonnes of organic topsoil was applied on site
  • 5 cubic tonnes of organic bark mulch
  • 2 hanging baskets installed
  • 2 seated arbour and 1 planted bench seat installed on site
  • 3 large planters were installed at the front of the care home

Trellis Area: Adjacent to the fishpond area was two trellises which have very small amount of planting in front of it and significant overhang from overgrown shrubs and trees. The grass has not taken in front of the area and carries high degrees of moss. Green Synergy dug out and created a new trellis bed planted with perennials, spring and summer bulbs, mulched with compost and bark mulch and the trellis was painted to match the new arbours.

 

Front of care home planters, shrubs and beds: New hanging baskets were installed at the front of the care home to improve the outlook of the front of the care home and provide a welcoming environment. A new bird table to replace the old broken bird table was created by our veterans at the charity and installed on site and it did attract a little visitor regularly whilst we were on site.

        

         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three new large planters: To improve and soften the front of the care home, three large rectangular planters were built, painted and installed on site. Painted to complement the colour scheme on site with the arbour and trellis in a soft willow green, three planters were then filled with organic compost and planted up with an array of winter, then spring plants and bulbs to provide yar around colour.

     

 Two New Arbours for Seating Area: Two new arbours were procured and built and installed onsite surrounding the old pond to provide residents with additional shelter seating areas and to complement the colour scheme through the garden and the garden furniture and planters.

During the course of our delivery sessions, it was so lovely to get very nice and positive feedback from the care home residents who welcomed the additional seating and, the work being done.

 New Bench Seating with Planters: To aid the residents to access additional seating around the focal point of the old fishpond and create a social gathering feel, Green Synergy procured, built and installed a new bench seating with planters to enhance the frontage of the care home near the pond. The planters were then planted initially with an array of spring plants and bulbs and then summer plants were added once the bulbs had gone over to provide longevity of flowering

New Dove Bed: the overgrown and undefined flower bed on the front lawn with the dove memorial in it was completely dug out, existing memorial plants retained and multiple perennial plants and spring and summer bulbs planted and mulched with bark.

    

 The Fountain Bed: This flower bed with the bird bath fountain in it was badly overgrown, covered in weeds and moss and the small trees and shrubs required significant pruning to enable new growth to come forward. The flower bed was completely re-shaped, dug out, weeded and re-edged. The small shrubs and trees were given a hard prune and shape in the autumn which allowed them to flourish in the spring. The flower bed then had seasonal and perennial plants and perennials planted and spring and summer bulbs to provide all year-round colour for the residents near the home frontage. The bed was then layered with compost media and woodchip to aid moisture retention.

                                                             

Before                                                                   Spring

Summer 2026

Woodland Bed: One of the largest elements to the green space improvement project at the care home was the restoration of the woodland bed. The woodland bed was riddled with weeds, very badly overgrown along with significant overhang from the adjacent trees which would need some pruning and heavy leaf drop that had not been cleared over a number of seasons. This did provide moisture and habitats, so we were conscious of these elements in the work undertaken.

 

Before                                                                 January 2026             

                   The large, long oval bed was completely dug out and redefined with purposeful shaping and the redefinition enabled us to plan out and plant shrubs, perennials suitable for a partial woodland area but also a bed that in parts received a lot of sun. The bed had the weeds dug out over the whole bed and replanting commenced on the whole bed. Large scale shrubs, shade loving plants, heathers, large quantities of spring, summer and autumn bulbs have been planted and considerable number of perennials and seasonal planting.

The beds were planted with a significant quantity of winter hardy plants including hellebores, heathers, ferns, primroses, wood anemones and bluebells as well as spring bulbs and native woodland plants and summer perennials such as Aquilegia, (columbine), as they in partial shade and well-drained, moist soil.

Fishpond Area: By far the largest undertaking of the project was the complete transformation of the old fish on into a planted central feature and focal point for the front of the care home. From the front hard surface surrounding a former fishpond was partially emptied and fish removed when we came onsite. Throughout the build there was significant ant activity on the hard standing area so something to be aware of as those ants bite!

Before                                     During                                       Infilled

As the pond had not been cleared of the stagnant water, our team had to undertake this task which took much longer than anticipated. Once drained, layers of cardboard, branches and twigs from site, mulch and green arising were laid in layers with another layer of cardboard to aid long term moisture retention. The build up of the planting level then commenced with organic compost layers and then the initial planting of the spring bulbs that will germinate for next spring. Layers in a bulb lasagne were then planted with both spring and summer bulbs and then two layers of topsoil mixed with compost with summer bulbs and then the final seasonal companion planting with a mixture of hardy miniature shrubs, perennials and fragranced plants alongside four David Austin fragranced rose bushes..

Planting in progress                                        Complete

 

A very happy Emma- Care Home Manager    An equally happy Green Synergy team

Copyright 2022 Green Synergy | Charity Number 1153883