Public Places
Powis Castle in all its glory “
The composting area
If we are using Lady Violet as our vision, we would still develop the garden, so we can add new plants. We are not stuck to a plan of that time, but it’s that feel
public. At the moment, there are 40ft drops off the hedge without balustrading, and the steps are subsiding due to the water. “It’s never been open to the public,” says David. “So we had an appeal and raised the funding to go ahead with the work. We will be re- doing all the steps, the planting is going to change a bit and we will put a new path along the top. So that will become another publicly accessible area. You will be able to see across the woodland, above the oak trees and into the distance. That will be a massive project, and it is big money; it’s about a half a million-pound project.” Higher up in the National Trust, there is a
group of highly experienced volunteers called The Gardens Panel, who have now amalgamated with the Architectural Panel. “As with the changes at the east front, the Panel come and have a look at it and give advice, to make sure it’s in keeping with the spirit of the place.” So, what happens when David wants to make a change to the garden? It has always
intrigued me how much leeway the gardeners have at historical properties such as this. “We’ve got advisors so, if there’s a major change, they will advise. There are conservation advisors to make sure it is ‘of the period’, e.g. rather than just me going out and picking a pot off the shelf!” David tells me that the garden at Powis
Castle has evolved and has ‘different layers of history next to each other’. “We have a 17th century Baroque garden, then we’ve got the landscape movement. So, if you stand on the terraces and look out at the park, William Winde came in and designed that. The water garden used to be on the big lawn, but was taken away. Then Lady Violet - wife of George Charles Herbert, 4th Earl of Powis (1862–1952) - took a big interest and created a formal garden, and moved the glass houses, which are now in the nursery.” This means that David and the team are
not stuck on a period for the plants. “Lady Violet wanted to make it one of the best gardens in Britain so, if we are using Violet as our vision, we would still develop the garden, so we can add new plants. We are not stuck to a plan of that time, but it’s that feel.” “The Trust have conservation plans, so we
are required to garden in these fashions. If a head gardener comes in and says; ‘I don’t like roses, let’s get rid of the roses’, that’s not a decision they can make. You work with the roses and, for example, we had some roses that were susceptible to mildew, so we replaced them. So yes, we get a reasonably free hand, but obviously we know the place. You don’t want to crush enthusiasm; people need to have pride in their work.” The team review the borders every year,
have a look around and come up with suggestions of what can be moved and what changes can be made. “They are changing all the time, but not ripped out; not the bedding schemes, they are permanent.” David tells me that they are also “greener
The Orangery with the terrace above 96 I PC FEBRUARY/MARCH 2016
gardeners”, in that they try not to use chemicals, unless absolutely necessary.
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