Sunday 18 March 2012

biddulph grange, stoke-on-trent

To Biddulph Grange, Stoke for a family day out.

And, as always, looking for interesting ideas.

This is a garden executed in grand Victorian style by the National Trust ... and beautifully and skillfully too.

These gardens are really worth a visit.

Pale yellow Corylopsis pauciflora was in full and early flower. Without a scent, it still attracted so many honey bees that the air around the shrubs buzzed with their arrival and departure. A must for the shopping list!!


As we edge towards beginning ground clearance work and the removal of tree stumps, I was fascinated to see what a 140 year old stumpery would look like. The answer is, it looked amazing and engendered a unique atmosphere in this part of the garden. The tree roots were twisted and worn by weather and the seasons and were covered in mosses with ferns nestling in the cracks. The stumpery we hope to create will not be on this scale!!! But you get an idea....

In the tree nursery that I now think of as 'The Cedar Garden' due to the dominating Atlas Blue Cedars, the ground around the cedars is covered by ivy.
This photograph, as with everything else connected with Biddulph Grange, is grand. But ivy covers the ground beneath these impressive Lime trees.

Also of interest to us were diminutive white muscari that looked less invasive than their blue cousins ...... and impressive topiary.

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