Witney News - Poppy planting in the repatriation memorial garden

Poppy planting in the repatriation memorial garden

Field Poppies are being sown as a symbol of remembrance at the repatriations memorial garden this spring.

The memorial garden, on Norton Way, on the edge of Carterton, was designed by a small group of local people including the Royal British Legion, community representatives from Brize Norton and Carterton, and current and retired military personnel. It is somewhere that people can pay their respects for military personnel.

The grass border at the rear of the memorial garden will be narrowed to make room for a meadow mix of poppies and wildflowers. The poppies will flower from May to September.

Mike Henderson - Oxfordshire Vice President for the Royal British Legion said: "The garden is a poignant reminder of those members of the armed forces repatriated from operation.”

The poppy has become synonymous with the loss of life in war. They were the first flowers to grow on the battlefields of Belgium, France and Gallipoli in 1915, and they have since become a symbol for remembrance.

Seasonal bedding plants and bulbs such as pansies and daffodils will be planted for additional colour during the winter months.