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Sightsavers at Bord Bia Bloom

In June 2022, Sightsavers hosted an inclusive sensory garden at Bord Bia Bloom festival in Phoenix Park, Dublin.

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An artistic representation of Sightsavers’ garden.

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Sightsavers Ireland showcased an accessible, award-winning garden at Bord Bia Bloom festival 2022, which took place in Dublin’s Phoenix Park on 2-6 June.

Gairdín na gCéadfaí, which means sensory garden, was designed to be an inclusive experience for people with visual impairment or sight loss, and celebrated Sightsavers’ work and partners in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Senegal and Cameroon.

The accessible garden featured more than 25 species of plants and drew inspiration from West Africa’s diverse landscape and vibrant culture.

To enhance their experience, visitors were able to listen to audio description guides as they moved through the garden.

Designed by Ailish Drake and Conor Hourigan of Drake Hourigan Architects in Limerick, the garden was developed with funding from our partners Irish Aid and An Post Insurance.

For more information about the festival, see www.bordbiabloom.com

Bord Bia Bloom logo.

About Bloom

When: 2-6 June 2022
Where: Phoenix Park, Dublin
How to get there: Enter the visitor centre, where the event is taking place, from Chesterfield Avenue.
Tickets: www.bordbiabloom.com

Irish Aid logo and An Post Insurance logo.

Want to know more about our sensory garden?

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Exploring the garden

Our wayfinding guides provided information on how to explore and orient yourself around the garden.

Visitors used a smartphone to access guided audio descriptions by scanning the numbered QR codes located in the garden. These provided more information about the plants, visuals and sensory design features.

What makes the garden accessible?

A wide, accessible pathway ran through the garden, featuring a kerb to guide people who use a white cane. The path was surrounded by rhythmic timber columns that provided a sensory experience.

Light, shadow, colour, scent and texture also brought the garden’s visual story to life as visitors moved towards the central meeting place under a large tree, which was decorated with colourful West African wax print fabric sails.

Wayfinding guides

Our guides, available online or as downloadable PDFs, helped visitors find their way to the event and navigate round the garden. Use the links below to access them.

Pre-visit information
Guide to navigating the garden

Featured plants

Acacia dealbata
Aloe vera
Astelia ‘Silver spear’
Butia capitata
Cordyline australis
Cyathea
Dianella ‘Cool vista’
Dicksonia antarctica
Fatsia japonica

Fatsia ‘Spider’s web’
Herbs selection
Hemerocallis ‘Stella de oro’
Hosta ‘June’
Ligustrum texanum
Miscanthus sinensis
Musa ensete ‘Maurellii’
Ophiopogon planiscarpus
Phoenix canariensis

Phormium tenax ‘Variegata’
Phyllostachys ‘Nigra’
Phyllostachys aureosulcata ‘Aureocaulis’
Pittosporum ‘Midget’
Pleioblastus distichus
Polystichum polyblepharum
Polystichum setiferum
Pseudosasa japonica

Rhynchospermum jasminoides
Stipa tenuissima ‘Pony tails’
Trachycarpus fortunei
Tamarix pentandra
Yucca rostrata

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