Around 30 volunteers arrived at Little Ponton Hall on a
foggy and cold November morning, where two knowledgeable guides drew our attention
to features of the landscape that many of us would otherwise have no doubt,
passed by, unaware. An example of this was the use made of various species of
trees and shrubs in the original planning of the gardens and grounds. At Little
Ponton Hall, a magnificent cedar was planted as an eye-catching feature that
could be enjoyed by those viewing it from both the inside and outside of the
building. Significance and virtue was apparently attached to certain trees and
our guides informed us of times past when it was fashionable to plant
particular species (for example, Scots Pine was popular in the mid C18.) Yews
were evidently chosen to provide dense screens, often used deliberately to
“delay” the view of the house until a break in the planting revealed it to its
best advantage.
Walking towards the hall’s boundary to reach one of the
better vantage points, our guides
invited us to look for hidden features including earlier garden plans
and areas where walls and lakes were once situated. With their help in
interpretation, previously “invisible” humps and bumps in the landscape
suddenly took on new meaning!
Wandering into the hall’s kitchen garden I soon found myself
in conversation with the head gardener who told me that the owners of the hall
still liked to be presented with a daily list of fresh garden produce that was
available for their table. Even at this late stage in the year, the garden was
immaculately tended and obviously still producing vegetables; all of this with
just three gardeners! A feature that took my attention was a huge mistletoe
plant, thriving on an old apple tree cordon as its host. I was told that the
plant had been there as long as anyone could recall and despite their best
efforts to propagate, it refused to grow anywhere else!
After a couple of hours our party travelled the few miles to
Stoke Rochford Hall. Our guides told us to expect a quite different environment
to that we had found at Little Ponton. This was immediately apparent when we
arrived. The hall and its grounds are on a far grander scale. The approach to
the hall employs the natural features of the surrounding landscape and
strategic tree planting heightens the visitors’ anticipation of seeing the hall
for the first time. With the guides’ insightful commentary, the garden’s former
features once again became clear. They took us to a secluded part of the
grounds where much debate took place as to its former function. An extensive
concreted area was thought to be what remained of a WW2 billet and supplies
depot and a sunken grassed area was possibly a croquet lawn or a former
parterre.
During our visit, the hall was receiving a visit from a team of window cleaners. Because of the hundreds of windows in the building, I imagined that here we might have an example of the “Forth Road Bridge” story; that once the task of washing the windows is completed, the whole process has to be repeated! A lucrative proposition for the window cleaners, I’m sure!
During our visit, the hall was receiving a visit from a team of window cleaners. Because of the hundreds of windows in the building, I imagined that here we might have an example of the “Forth Road Bridge” story; that once the task of washing the windows is completed, the whole process has to be repeated! A lucrative proposition for the window cleaners, I’m sure!
The training day then, was enjoyable and informative. It
served to make the surveying of parks and gardens less daunting, setting in
context the current landscape features with those that are less obvious, but
visible to the observant. A worthwhile training event and another opportunity
to meet fellow Heritage Stewards.
Colin, Heritage Steward
