Bringing Down the Roof

Despite temperatures still up in double figures, there’s an October feel around the gardens. Rain is replenishing summer’s parched soil, and fruiting bodies of fungi are erupting out of dead wood around the gardens filling the air with distinctly mushroom-y smell. The annual task of keeping the paths free of leaves begins again – all part of the cycle of the seasons throughout the gardens.

Up on the Roof

The temporary roof, looking a little raggedy now, coming towards the end of its days.

We are able to share some very exciting news! Fingers crossed, beginning 7^th November 2022, the temporary roof that has sheltered Betley Court for the past twenty-one months will start being dismantled. Our contractors, MD Scaffolding Ltd will be taking down the top part of the massive structure over approximately three weeks, revealing our restored roof and chimneys for the first time since rebuilding work started.

The huge temprary roof structure, as seen on Google Maps. It looks like somebody's pixelated Betley Court!

It is quite an emotional time for us, as you can imagine. It’s just three-years and two months since the fire, and remembering back to the early days, initially we weren’t even sure if Betley Court could be rebuilt. Now, we’re not far off having a complete ‘external envelope’ as our experts call it, i.e. a watertight roof, and secure windows and doors. I think we can reward ourselves with a pat on the back for that, and send a huge cheer of appreciation to all the skilful people that made it possible.

Betley Court, very shortly after the fire

We had a visit from a former employee of the National Trust earlier this week. Nigel gave her what I call ‘the six-penny tour’ of the house. She saw some of the unusual rooms that escaped the fire, like our octagon room, one of six eight-sided rooms at Betley Court, and the old scullery, now an open plan kitchen/diner complete with old bread oven feature doors. She also had a walk around the inside of the fire damaged part of the house. One thing she commented on was that we had done quite a lot in a relatively short time, and with a wry smile said that was not something the National Trust would have achieved. Gosh! Quite a compliment for us, I think!

Out and About

Planning has started for the gardens for 2023, and one of the projects we want to get off the ground is the restoration of Barron’s yew screen, an unusual living garden feature that, we can trace back to William Barron’s original 1865 garden plans, which can be found in the William Salt Library in Stafford. Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council has given us permission to begin the process of restoring the screen, but I must confess to feeling quite daunted at the prospect of cutting into these old yew trees, most likely raised by Barron from seed in his nursery in Barrowash, Derbyshire.

William Barron's 1865 design for the formal parterre at Betley Court. The yew screen is circled in red (image use with permission by the William Salt Library, Stafford)

William Barron's yew screen in more kempt times (old postcard image)

Barron's yew screen (centre) quite overgrown and dwarfed by the temporary roof

Regular readers will remember we have sought advice from the arboriculturalists at Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew and Elvaston Castle. During our recent visit to the Lake District, we also found ourselves investigating topiary at SizerghCastle. The castle is the family seat of the Hornyold-Stickland family, but is maintained by the National Trust. Although the castle dates back around 800-years, the gardens today are relatively newly established. Rather than recreate past gardens in a historically accurate way, the grounds evoke a sense of past horticultural schemes. They would certainly set the scene if used in a film as a setting for bygone times.

We had many questions for the dedicated staff, who had to cast their minds back to ‘before Covid’ to answer. The 1920s rock garden was re-laid before lockdown and is now quite established; a mixture of topiary shapes, and herbaceous plants like dahlias. Some of the topiary (evergreeen shrubs shaped by regular pruning into shapes) in the grounds is comparatively new, arranged to create focal points and invite visitors to explore the gardens further, or sit and enjoy the framed view. 

Wonderful formal, yew pyramids (Taxus baccata), creating a focal point towards a seating bench

Informal box (Buxus semperirens) clipped into cloud shapes

There is something playful, or is it whimsical about topiary in an English garden. And topiary shapes give a garden all year-round structure. From my point of view, it was valuable to understand how quickly yew topiary establishes itself, or re-establishes itself after a severe rejuvenating prune. All I need now is the courage to get started on our yew screen!!

The highlight of the gardens for me though, was a gorgeous Japanese acer grouping, and fernery set in a stumpery. We chose the right time of year, as autumn turned the leaves an array of fiery colours. Stunning!

Japanes acers in autumnal glory

What heartened me most about the gardens was seeing how they had been reinvigorated and reimagined for modern practicality and yet retained that air of historic gardens. No wonder they are rated Grade II.

All best wishes

Ladybird Su