End of July Visit to Herefordshire - Part 2: Berrington Hall Gardens

 

On the Friday afternoon we decided to go to Berrington Hall and visit the walled garden. We struggled to park for ages as unusually it was really busy there. I had forgotten it was the school holidays!

There are some lovely old trees in the parkland which was designed by Capability Brown.

There were some lovely plants and seedheads for sale by the visitor centre. I was really tempted by some of the former but in view of the problems we are having with pots at the caravan and lack of rain I managed to resist!

This is part of the new flower garden which was created last year. 

Sadly, quite a few of the plants in the new and the walled gardens were really suffering from lack of water.

Another view of the new garden.

The Berrington estate was sold by the Cornewall family in 1775 to a Thomas Harley, son of the third Earl of Oxford.

The hall was built between 1778 and 1781.  Thomas Harley's family had had connections with Herefordshire for many years.  He had made his fortune in London as a banker and government contractor.  In 1776 he was declared MP for Herefordshire.

Thomas Harley had no male heir but in 1781 his second daughter married the son of Lord Admiral Rodney and after Harley's death the estate passed into the hands of the Rodney family for 95 years.  The estate was sold, to pay gambling debts, to Frederick Cawley from Lancashire.  The estate came into the hands of the National Trust in 1957.

The walled garden was originally the kitchen garden for the hall but fell out of use in World War 2 as it was too expensive to maintain. The National Trust has replanted some of the garden with orchards using pre C20th varieties of apples.  

A lovely herb garden surrounded this greenhouse.

We sat for a while on a bench under the shade of a mulberry tree and watched blackbirds and song thrushes feasting on the fruits. We also saw a great tit and a juvenile robin just gaining its red breast.

 

 Due to lack of rain the gardens  were not  really looking at their best which was disappointing as usually at this time of year they are full of flowers.  We found a similar situation when we visited last September for exactly the same reason.

 

There were several wild carrot plants which was lovely to see as it is one of my favourite wild flowers. 

More plants suffering from the drought :(

The orchards had a good crop of apples.

This is a photo of the actual dress which I saw in the "Fit for a King" exhibition in the hall in 2022.

Ivy leafed toadflax

I checked this huge Common Ragwort plant but couldn't find any Cinnabar Moth caterpillars.

I thought at first this was an owl nest box but now I am wondering if it is meant for house sparrows? Does anyone have any ideas?

Then we went into the Curved Wall Garden created by Capability Brown in 1783 which is one of only two in existence.  It was believed at the time that curved walls were good for growing fruits and vegetables as they provided more heat than straight ones.

Then back into kitchen garden.

By now it was beginning to get rather too hot so we went and had an icecream and I had a quick look round the second hand bookshop. I didn't stay long as it was crowded with people.

Reference: Berrington Hall Guide Book and various information boards.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).

August Visit to Herefordshire - Part 2: Berrington Hall

 

On the Thursday we decided to visit Berrington Hall as we haven't been since 2023 and it is only just over 20 minutes away.

There are some lovely old trees in the parkland which was designed by Capability Brown towards the end of his career.

The Berrington estate was sold by the Cornewall family in 1775 to a Thomas Harley, son of the third Earl of Oxford.

The hall was built between 1778 and 1781.

Thomas Harley's family had had connections with Herefordshire for many years.  He had made his fortune in London as a banker and government contractor.  In 1776 he was elected as MP for Herefordshire.

Thomas Harley had no male heir but in 1781 his second daughter Anne married the son of Lord Admiral  Rodney and after Thomas Harley's death the estate passed into the hands of the Rodney family for 95 years.  The estate was sold in 1901, to pay gambling debts, to Frederick Cawley from Lancashire.  The estate came into the hands of the National Trust in 1957.

The entrance lodge resembles a Triumphal Arch.

"Berrington's Brown Yew Balls".  Due to being transplanted last Autumn and the driest Spring for 69 years the yew balls have gone into shock.  The National Trust plans to continue watering and will then assess the yews to see if  they can be pruned.  There are many green shoots inside the yew. The green covers protect the yew balls by shielding them from  the wind and helping to retain moisture.

The yew balls were moved to make way for a new flower garden.

This photo shows what it looked like before the new garden was created.

The walled garden was originally the kitchen garden for the hall but it fell out of use in World War 2 as it was too expensive to maintain. The National Trust has replanted some of the garden with orchards using pre C20th varieties of apples 

Many of the plants in the garden were really suffering from lack of rain which was a shame as the gardens normally look lovely at this time of the year.

A willow reconstruction of the court mantua dress worn by the first Lady of Berrington, Anne Harley, created by local artist Liam Lacey.  Nature was often used as an inspiration for clothing patterns and embroidery designs in the C18th and certain flowers were chosen to reflect their hidden meanings.

This is a photo of the actual dress which I saw in the "Fit for a King" exhibition in the hall in 2022.

Apples were being harvested.

The curved wall garden was created by Capability Brown in 1783 and is one of only two in existence.  It was believed at the time that curved walls were good for growing fruit and vegetables as the curved walls  provided more heat than a straight one.

Behind the iron fence is part of a HaHa commonly used in C18th gardens and landscape  It is a ditch with a fence or wall designed to keep livestock at bay but allowing an uninterrupted view of the parkland from the house/garden.

Berrington Hall was designed by architect Henry Holland in the new French Neo-Classical style.  The hall has a grand ionic portico.

I didn't go inside the house on this visit but if you wish to see the interior and the "Fit for a King" exhibition including the gorgeous dress above please see Berrington Hall Interior .

This is a lovely lake which we once walked round.  It has the largest heronry in the county.  Capability Brown designed it to look like a river.

It was getting quite hot by now so we just had a quick look round the second hand bookshop before leaving.

We spent Friday at the caravan site and came home on Saturday afternoon.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).

Reference: Berrington Hall Guide Book and various information boards.