Herald of Spring

We’ve had some chilly hard frosts this week at Betley Court Gardens. Its made working outside more challenging, but has provided some wonderful atmospheric lighting conditions for taking photographs around the grounds. We are seeing the first signs of spring, with snowdrop and daffodil shoots poking up out of the soil already. Up on the paddock, Nigel and I have been getting the winter pruning done, taking out branches that overhang paths, and thinning where necessary.

Frost down in the Dingle by the pond

Up on the paddock, early morning

Frost on an oak leaf

A little robin has taken to following me around the paddock as I work. Its not as tame as the robin that frequents our allotment at home. That one darts in and out of your feet, ready to snaffle any hapless worms that get tossed about as you dig. Betley Court’s robin is much more reserved, perching at a safe distance. I spot it, out of the corner of my eye as I drag cut branches out of the way, watching to see if any grubs are disturbed in the undergrowth. It swoops down and hunts through the scrub and grass that the twigs at the end of the branches turn over.  After its hunt, it retreats to a high branch to observe me once more, and if I’m lucky, sings me a song, rewarding me for my efforts. I like to think it sings me a song that heralds the springtime ahead. I wish I could take a photograph, but it’s just too wary of me to stay still for long.

Down by the visitor hub

Elsewhere, blackbirds squabble over patches of territory in the garden, and down in the Dingle, a woodpecker has started work on a new residence, high up in one of the tall oak trees. The avian community of Betley Court are preparing for their future offspring. When we stop for lunch in the visitor hub, squirrels play outside at the edge of the woods for our amusement, tearing through piles of leaflitter and bombing up tree trunks at great speed. They seem oblivious to our presence or mirth.

The roof over Fletcher House, starting to take a recognisable shape

Up at the house, ever increasing quantities of wood disappearing into the scaffold structure for the construction of the new roof. I’ve really begun to appreciate how massive the roof is – usually the roof is viewed from ground level, and you get no idea of the true scale of it. Up close, it is huge!

Beautiful herring bone effect of the rafters joining the timber that make up one of the valleys on the roof. Gorgeous standard of charpentry, given this will disappear under slates eventually.

There’s tentative talk of the arrival of the gargantuan steel beams that will soon straddle the vast void space of the main house, to carry the hipped curves of the roof. The courtyard is already being cleared for the arrival of the crane that will carry these beams to their new home. There is definitely an air of expectation around the place!

The Brown's family kitchen

On our weekly walk around the scaffolding, Nigel and I were taking full advantage of the newly installed temporary electric lighting to look at some of the old decoration that survived the fire. Perhaps, surprisingly, we have no visual record of the inside of the house in its Victorian or Georgian heyday. However, in the kitchen of the main house, paint has burnt back revealing patches of earlier pigment. There are two distinct layers of colour, one a sort of sage green underneath another paler ‘apple white’ paint. Had we the resources and conservation expertise of the National Trust, we might find out what period the paint layers came from. Instead, I’ve made photographic records of the paint, which might inspire colour schemes when we get around to repainting that part of the house.

Scorched paint peeled back to reveal previous paint colours

The jaded grandeur of the kitchen plasterwork

Sections of plasterwork have survived the fire, and subsequent works to the building. It remains to be seen if they can be cleaned up and retained, but for the time being, they give the old kitchen a wonderful jaded grandeur.

Noughts and crosses, anyone?

The Brown’s kitchen tiling, installed in the 1970s, also survived the fire and demolition phase of the rebuild, and our contractors have put them to good use as noughts and crosses boards. We had to laugh at that!

All best wishes

Ladybird Su

UPCOMING DATES at Betley Court Gardens

DATE	ACTIVITY	DETAILS
12th March	Emes Society	Taster session – bulb planting ‘in the green’
13th March	Heritage tour of the Garden	Pre-booked event
9th & 10th April	Tours of the scaffolding and house showing the rebuild process	Pre-booked event
30th April/1st May	Official Opening weekend/Bluebell walk
16th & 17th July	Open Garden with Heritage Walk	Pre-booking required for walks
20th & 21th August	Tours of the scaffolding and house showing the rebuild process	Pre-booked event
8th & 9th October	Open Gardens	Talk and view exterior of Betley Court once the scaffolding is removed