CASTLE OF MEY


‘Harsh north-easterly winds gusting down from the Arctic originally dictated the layout’


These are separated by wildlife-friendly hedges of beech, elderflower, fuchsia, hawthorn, laburnum, berberis, wild rose and flowering currant, under-planted with yellow Primula florindae. Particularly impressive are the stands of


sweet peas that flourish in this free-draining soil enriched with homemade mulch and crushed sea shells to help with drainage and to reinforce ‘the seaside feel’. Different themes run through the perimeter borders, with warm reds and pinks to the east and yellow and blue on the west – magnificent stands of delphiniums are an important feature. The lower border, Andrew’s favourite, combines a skilled mix of reds and greys of claret-coloured Astrantia major, Cirscium rivulare, maroon-leaved heuchera, Anthemis and the silver-grey foliage of buddleia. Vegetables are rotated in four-yearly cycles


to reduce pests and disease. Here, for use in the castle, traditional vegetables combine with globe artichokes (a present from a French garden) and Shetland Black and Pink Fir Apple potatoes, all of which thrive on a seaweed mulch collected off the shore. The fruit cage is packed with strawberries,


raspberries and ancient black, red and white currants used to make jams for the castle. ‘The Queen Mother liked to plant blackcurrants against the walls “for the birds”, and over the decades these have self-seeded throughout the mixed hedges,’ Andrew explains. A pair of greenhouses contain an extensive collection of old scented-leaved pelargoniums selected by the Queen Mother; cuttings are taken every few years to keep up the stock. A walk across the formal lawns south of the


castle where the late Queen played croquet, leads to the east garden, a long, shady strip planted with hostas, hellebores and primula, with height coming from Weigela ‘Bristol Ruby’. At the far end there are walks through sycamore-filled woodlands full of cow parsley. Stressing the vital contribution of second


Far left: Paths covered with crushed seashells lead to the well-stocked glasshouse. Left: Delicate blooms such as these sweet peas thrive despite the northerly latitude.


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