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Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni’s new John Ystumllyn memorial kitchen garden has been unveiled
A memorial garden honouring John Ystumllyn has been unveiled by pupils at Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni.
The garden, at the Y Gwyndy campus in Caerphilly, pays tribute to the first documented black gardener in Wales.
John, also known as Jac Du or Jack Black, was brought to north Wales by slave-traders as a child in the 1700s.
In Wales, John learned horticulture and craftmanship and married a Welsh maid; Margaret Gruffydd.
He became a much-liked and well-respected figure in his community, though his marriage to a white woman was controversial at the time.
Pupils from the school’s Eco Council and wellbeing spaces, alongside cookery students, unveiled their new garden in his honour on Friday July 11.
They have transformed what was once a disused and overgrown space into a tranquil “kitchen garden”, creating their own hand-crafted signs and planting a variety of flowers.
At the heart of the garden stands the John Ystumllyn Rose – a golden yellow flower symbolising friendship and inclusivity.
Pupils busy working on their new school garden
Some of the flowers planted by pupils
Pupils at the unveiling of the John Ystumllyn memorial kitchen garden
Guests at the garden’s unveiling
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Lynn Gazal
Lynn Gazal
Lynn Gazal
Lynn Gazal
Lynn Gazal
Lynn Gazal