The History - Kelvin Lawrence Nursery - Tilford Green Nursery
The site for the proposed Tilford Enterprise Centre is a 4 acre plot of land previously used as a horticultural nursery for over 60 years. Founded around 1960 by Kelvin Lawrence, the Kelvin Lawrence Nursery specialised in conifer trees and was one of the leading suppliers of conifer in the country. With over 300 species on offer, many of which Mr Lawrence had discovered on his many sourcing trips around the world, its varied stock also allowed for the creation of new conifers, with one notable cultivar named ‘Tilford Gold’ being created around 1990. Mr Lawrence was also a pioneer in selling plants in nursery pots, with the first being motor oil cans cut in half!
In the 1970s and 1980s conifers became hugely popular and started to fill up gardens everywhere, and the Kelvin Lawrence Nursery became incredibly busy, with lorries regularly parked up along the road waiting for their turn to load. His conifers went to other nurseries around the country, as well as large developers and small housebuilders, which is where we came in.
For Valerie and David Burch, buying the nursery was an emotional purchase. As a small scale housebuilder David Burch always ensured he landscaped the gardens of his homes, and as such had been buying conifers from the Kelvin Lawrence Nursery since the 1970s. It was a place that he loved to visit, and as such when Mr Lawrence came to sell in 1995 David jumped at the chance to buy it. Fortunately, following the purchase of the site and business all the staff decided to stay on, not least of all Morris Stokes who had joined the Kelvin Lawrence Nursery in 1962. Mr Stokes was invaluable, as he knew all there was to know about conifers and the conifer business, and he had also been there through all the years of growth.
The site on which the nursery stands originally included The Malt House, a 500 year old oak framed treasure of a building which you see as you pull up to the site. At the time of selling the site was split into two, with Mr Lawrence retaining The Malt House as his home (now with a new owner), and the nursery owned and run by the Burch family. Following the sale it was renamed Tilford Green Nursery.
Unfortunately the late 1990s and early 2000s were not kind to the conifer, and with tastes changing and demand dropping, the decision was taken to close the business in 2003. Following the closure of the Nursery the site has been left relatively derelict, with occasional usage as a photoshoot and filming location. As a site within a picturesque village, it seems a shame for it to be an eyesore when it can be so much more.
Over the years we explored residential proposals which have been rejected, eventually diverting us to our vision for Tilford Enterprise Centre.
Location
The proposed site in is Tilford, Surrey, a picturesque village that is approximately 3.5 miles from the market town of Farnham. It has good links to London via the M3 or A3, as well as a direct train line from Waterloo to Farnham station. The site is in the centre of the village, opposite the village green which is used for cricket during the summer months. There is also a village shop and traditional country pub for those after work drinks!