Hodnet Hall Gardens

Wishing all of our visitors, followers and supporters a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

300 new Roses planted today in the Circle Garden.

The perfect weather to start our final open day of 2023.

Old Father Time keeping watch over the gardens.

Incidentally this Sunday is your final chance to visit the gardens in 2023 and see the beautiful autumn colours.

The Hodnet Hall dovecote built in 1656 and used by the ocupents of the original Tudor Hall which was in the valley close to where the tea rooms stand.

Built of stone and brick it’s original purpose was to give the doves a nesting place so that they could be readily plucked from their rest and prepared for the table!
Indeed Dove meat and their eggs was the staple of many diets century’s ago. It was a highly prized meat throughout Europe.

Today the dovecote is no longer home to any doves although inquisitive cows do wonder inside from time to time.

The gardens are open today as normal.

The Hodnet Folly or monument was the idea of the Brigadier A G W Heber-Percy the owner and creator of the gardens here at Hodnet.

He chose a spot in the field next to the road to Marchamley to catch the eye of passing motorists and also to give interest to visitors to the gardens where the Folly would line up with the end of the drive.
The sandstone pillars were originally the portico at Apley Castle in Telford which was demolished in 1955 but not before the Brigadier made sure to save them.

Sadly he passed away before he could see his vision become a reality.
Six years later however his family decided to carry out his idea and the portico was erected over three weeks from mid September into October of 1967 in his memory.

Since then it has inspired much intrigue to passers by and visitors.

The final rose bed filled with fresh top soil this afternoon just before the rain came. Great work by all the team and Jon the digger driver to excavate the old soil and refill with new top soil. Just shy of 200tons of soil was moved.

Beautiful autumn morning.

New soil going into the first bed.

Work to dig out the Roses and soil from the rose beds in the Circle Garden has begun. As always the excavation is in the expert hands of John the Digger driver.

The Cladrastis coming into its autumn foliage

Just six days remain to visit the gardens this year. The end of the open season seems to have come upon us very quickly.

Some beautiful early autumn colour this morning.

A good day for the garden team today. One thousand Narcissus ‘Sunlight Sensation’ planted on the Magnolia walk and two hundred and forty Vinca minor planted as ground cover in Captain Stokes garden.

Peony beds cut back and tidied.

Scots Pine - Pinus sylvestris. Planted tightly together in one area of the garden in the 1940s to make them grow tall and thin. With the original intention of them to be used later as firewood.

Sunday morning.

Left in The gardens yesterday. Please get in touch if it’s yours.

The large boulder in the Stone Garden was originally in the horse wash pool near the tea rooms.
During the ongoing development of the gardens in the 1950s however it was pulled and lifted by a crane and placed into the centre of the lawn in a new area above the horse wash.
The crane driver had already snapped one chain moving the large boulder so a stronger chain was sourced and fitted and the driver, naturally worried about the same happening again. Dropped the boulder into place before any debate could take place as where the best area to place it could be had.

Available today in Tea Room ☺️🍰

It is of course a Bank Holiday weekend. Which means the gardens and tea room will be open on both Sunday and Monday, 11am - 5pm.

Does anybody have any old photographs or postcards of the Hodnet Hall or the Gardens they would like to kindly share to this page?

A splendid morning.

Acer japonicum ‘Vitifolium’ already starting to turn to its autumn colours as the samara ripen.

Catching some wonderful sun in the Stone Garden.

A long long time ago this lawn was home to the family tennis court. The half timber and brick building was originally used to spectate over the tennis court. Later it was converted to be used as a dog kennel hence the two doors at the rear.
Most recently as a seating area for visitors to the gardens.

A few cakes from today’s selection.

Available today Hodnet Hall Vegetable Garden Stew served with crusty bread and Hodnet Hall Rhubarb custard crumble Tart served with clotted cream and Rhubarb coulis.

Catalpa bignonioides. It’s wood is brittle and hard, but does not rot easily; it is used for fence posts and railroad ties in the United States where it is a Native Tree.

Still lots to be seen in the Herbaceous borders.

Astilbes at their best at the moment is our water gardens.

The flower of Liriodendron tulipifera 'Aureomarginatum' . Commonly known as the Tulip Tree. The trees can take anywhere between 15 - 30 years to flower so to have one in flower now is a real treat.

Underway.