Date/Time
Date(s) - 14/10/2016
7:30 pm
Location
Kilmington Village Hall
Categories
Five years ago, Christine Brain came to talk to us about the history of the garden at Barrington Court where she was, and still is, the head gardener. Her talk on this visit reminded members of the background to the garden and went on to describe current developments. Barrington Court was the first large house to be bought by the National Trust, in 1907, with 200 acres of neglected land. The original house, thought to date from 1550, was in poor condition. It was leased to the Lyle family, of sugar fortunes, who restored the house and created the gardens. Although the original house must have had a garden, there were no plans to refer to: this gave the family unlimited scope for a new design and they called for assistance from Gertrude Jeckyll. She introduced three walled gardens, an orchard, herbaceous borders and ornamental ponds – very much the same layout as today. After the departure of the Lyle family, the garden declined once more and has been restored anew under the auspices of the National Trust.
Christine led the audience on a tour of the whole estate, using old photographs where possible to illustrate the changes. Ten acres of the orchard remain, with fewer fruit trees but masses of wonderful white daffodils in spring most of which had been planted in the 1920s. Of the three walled gardens, two are ornamental and the largest is a one-acre kitchen garden. This contains the greenhouses and cold frames, and is lined with long herbaceous borders. Although it is a productive garden, the arrangement of the area is traditionally decorative with a central pool, statuary and beds edged with flowers. Walls support espalier peaches and cordon pears, and all the produce used in the restaurant is grown in the garden. The other two walled areas are smaller: one has been replanted as a most successful ‘white garden’ with the original layout of the beds preserved. uccessive planting maintains the white theme throughout the year. The lily pond garden receives similar attention, the planting changing from wallflowers to dahlias as the seasons progress. Both are flanked by long borders, giving a blaze of colour throughout the year. Slides of the garden from springtime to midwinter snow illustrated the huge range of plants used, most of which are grown at Barrington. Many touches of pure Jeckyll remain, especially the long brick-pillared pergola outside one of the walled areas. Replanting and renovation is a non-stop task: the final picture was of the tree-lined avenue where diseased chestnut trees have recently been replaced with tulip trees. In a lively Q and A session, the audience was amazed to learn that Barrington has just two full-time gardeners, plus three part-timers. They do, however, encourage volunteers.