The West Gardens

Returning to the front entrance of the building we can now explore the upper garden to the north west of the building which is hidden by shrubs from the approach drive. Here we find the sloping ground has been exploited with more variety and informality into a series of delightful terraced gardens, still small in scale but creating a sequence of garden spaces each with its own individual character deriving from the pleasing spatial quality given by the plants, the paving, the walls and the views. The first garden you come to is the Spring Garden, again this is a new addition created over the last year, using plants and bulbs that give a wonderful show from early spring with snow drops right through to late May with Rhododendrons and Azaleas. One new addition to this garden is the fantastic living willow Gazebo at the far end. The next garden of paving and lawn outside the west frontage of the building is now called the Japanese garden ( originally the pond garden). This garden has again been transformed, with new pools and walls to create the garden using only plants that originate from Japan. Framing the pool is a beautiful weeping birch (Beltula pendula Youngii).The garden is screaned by the Black Bamboo ( Phyllostachys nigra).A large mass of the small yellow-leaved ivy (hedera helix "Buttercup") covers part of the grey-red sandstone wall with a Chinese gooseberry (actinidia chinensis) and a white flowered climbing rose also competing for attention. Beyond this paved garden we can ascend stone steps on to the Lime Walk, this had been removed some 50 years ago after neglect and, has been reinstated which again frames the fantastic views, to the Dukes home at Eaton Hall and beyond to the Welsh Hills. Climbing roses: the deep pink Rosa "Madame Gregoire Staechelm the light pink "Ophelia" and the shining white "Seagull" are climbing over the old wall that leads to the stone arch which isn’t shown on the 1901 plan leading you to the uppermost part of the garden, "The Long Bank", a lawn compartment with a tall stone boundary wall giving shelter on the north side. In this garden we find a short cypress avenue with some small geometric flower beds which are unfortunately out of character with the rest of the garden. They were originally a part of the garden which was much favoured by the former Duke of Westminster. This has all been removed now and is being replaced by The Italian Garden. This garden is in the design process at the moment.

The garden has been divided into six smaller gardens by yew hedging and each small garden will have a formal design that is taken from the building, and replicated by using a form of hedging to show off the design. Down the centre is a reflecting water rill, which leads the eye to the two Irish Yews at the end of the rill. As you climb the steps at the end of the rill you catch glimpses of what is beyond through the windows that have been created within the Living willow tunnel, which leads you into the furthest part of the garden known as the Orchard; there are no fruit trees in this part of the garden, only the crab apple. There are though some beautiful specimen trees in this garden, Tulip Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), Pin oak (Quercus palustris) to name but a few. In the early spring this garden is full of Snow-drops and Crocus which covers the floor like a carpet. Next come the Dwarf Daffodils to carpet the floor. Then, lastly, the beautiful Fritillaries make their show.