October days…

  Above Uppark House and the South meadow at sunrise (photo credit: Kirsty Brown)

Above Beautiful displays from the cut flower team greeted visitors during the first weekend of October.

 Above South meadow at sunrise with a view of the South Downs beyond (photo credit: Kirsty Brown)

Above Dahlia ‘Arabian Night’

Above Lovely combinations of Dahlia ‘Arabian Night’, D. ‘Purple Gem’ Anemone hupehensis japonica, Verbena bonariensis and deep red foliage of Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diabolo’

Above Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus) berries providing wonderful colour on the edge of the South meadow near the dairy bank. 

Above Abelia x grandiflora gives great interest late into the season at the entrance to the scented garden. 

Midsummer Meadow…

  Viewpoints and vistas

Over recent years much of our work in the garden and surrounding countryside has been to make the best of one of of our key features; the wonderful views of the South Downs National Park and out to sea to the Solent. On a clear day, the sun sparkles and glistens off the sea and it’s possible to pick out passing ships and tankers, the Spinnaker tower and the Isle of Wight beyond. We’ve created viewpoints and vistas from various parts of the garden and woodland. From the log bench along the woodland walk, we’ve punched a hole through the broadleaf canopy to let more sunshine in and provide a window through to the Ditcham valley. In other areas of the garden we’ve highlighted architectural features with careful ‘editing’ of the shrubs and trees.

Birds, bluebells and butterflies.

  

Above: Bluebells in the woodland (Photo credit Andy Lewis) 

As a result of this pruning and thinning work, we’ve noticed more bluebells and butterflies enjoying this sunlit space this year. One of the visitor reception team remarked this year that she could hear more birdsong following the woodland thinning work during the winter.

Tasty views

We’ve relaxed our rules on picnics in the garden, all we ask is that you to take your litter home with you. An additional, enclosed picnic area has been created near the café with lovely views across the South meadow. So why not top up your picnic with a cuppa, a cake or an ice cream? Or you can just throw a rug on the South meadow, enjoy a relaxing read or snooze and let the children run around on the nearby toy box lawn.

Hope to see you soon….

Uppark House and Garden is open 7 days a week from 10am – 5pm. Thank you to Sarah Sheldrake for these wonderful images of the South meadow.

If you’d like to bring your dog, there’s a short route around the woodland walk (steep in sections) and your four-legged friend will need to be on a short lead. For more exercise for you and your dog/dogs, nearby Harting Down is superb.

Pre-season briefing

We held two pre-season briefings in late February for the volunteer team. At the end of one of the meetings, we were asked if the notes (and images) were available to read through and digest; so here are the garden details.

Close up of the Coade urn (photo credit: Andy Lewis)

Capability Brown 2016

Celebrating 300 years of Capabilty Brown’s stunning landscape designs

Uppark House and Garden will be involved in this project and the garden team will be forming a property focus group to take this forward, expressions of interest from property based staff and volunteers were requested.  

Circuit path project

A project to re-instate ‘lost’ historic paths around the garden.

 Judy from the garden team carefully scrapes away the soil to reveal the historic paths

Objectives

• Phased installation of hard path network over 3 years (sub-base topped with gravel)
• Deliver phase 1 dairy bank and café paths in autumn 2015

Progress

• Client brief submitted by project manager for review to client
• Visit in March 2015 from NT Archaeologist to discuss project

Portico bed

The Portico bed will be planted with lavender and ornamental onions this year (photo credit: Rae Comben)

• Japanese holly to be relocated to near the Gothick seat and planting scheme simplified
• Planting to be replaced with Lavandula angustifolia ‘Hidcote’ or L. vera and Allium ‘Purple Sensation’

Glasshouse project

Propagation at Alitex glasshouses – we hope to retain the use of the glasshouses at the Alitex showsite for growing on space, but most of our propagation will take place at Uppark (photo credit Andy Lewis)

Objectives

• Relocate glasshouse at Petworth (below) to Uppark
• Improve our conservation performance indicators* by:

1. Growing plants on site

2. Ducting warm air from the biomass boiler house (regulated by a thermostatically controlled fan) into the glasshouse

3. Creating an area for cold frames

4. Upgrading tool washing facilities

5. Creating a plant quarantine area (to inspect plants delivered on site to monitor health for 6 weeks prior to planting in the garden)

Other work planned

• Continuation of yew hedge along flint wall along tea garden boundary

Tom and Terry from the garden team get stuck into some grubbing out

Cut flower project

‘Italy’ arranged by cut flower volunteer Susie, for the Grand Tour Flowers event in 2013 (photo credit: Russell Baker)

Led by Gardener Jenny Swatton (below)

Jenny enjoying the snow a few weeks ago (photo credit Tristan Beard)

Objective

Monthly displays in the house, this follows the success of a first full season of flower arrangements last year.

Grazing in the meadow

For 7 day opening, to retain access to the South meadow during the winter, we will fence off lower section of the south meadow with stock proof fencing in time for grazing season. Thank you to farmers Keith and Pauline for the idea and for their great work helping to manage the South meadow – happy semi- retirement! (Photo credit Andy Lewis)

The creation of this fence will help with the management of the haylage in the summer.

Lambs? Yes we’d love to have lambs in spring 2016…watch this space

Brinsbury College – we discussed possibility of fencing project with the college and other projects/schemes with the college/South Downs NT Volunteers are being considered.

Copper beech update

This is the tree on the garden boundary, its canopy hangs over the staff and volunteer car park. One of the limbs failed last July, fortunately no secondary injury or damage occurred.

• Remedial work has been carried out 16/2 to reduce the end weight and pressure on branch union
• Non-invasive bracing will be added to support the limb in case of failure
• Recommend staff and volunteers parking away from area directly underneath canopy of tree

Hedge-laying

below Aubrey, hedge-laying adviser with Terry in 2012

• Year 4 2014 Right side of extension to the visitor car park
• Year 5 2015 Section between upper and lower car parks

Reduced leaf raking this year –  due to mechanisation. This has meant the team have been able to concentrate on other tasks.

Grass cutting – temporary closures of areas will be necessary during the season, especially during periods of wet weather that may affect the grass cutting regime.

Woodland management – Light, biodiversity and safety

1.Limit overhanging branches/deadwood over access routes

2.Improve visibility for vehicles on site.

3.Tree inspections – training volunteers to carry out post storm inspections

Conservation and environmental performance

1.Improve biodiversity on site

2.Timber extraction finances forestry work

3.Training venue – work to our specification for free

Events

Mother’s day event (installation 13 March) with Harting School – ceramic daffodils made and ‘planted’ by school children,  on the grass banks on the approach to the North entrance to the house.

Flowers in the House 2-4 May House decorated with flowers from the garden, arranged by the Uppark cut flower team.

Dawn Chorus Walk 11 May Matt Phelps (below – photo credit National Trust) leads an early morning walk around the estate followed by a cuppa and a bacon buttie (gardener from Winkworth Arboretum)

 

 Above, Stephen Allum’s wonderful photo taken during Cameras at Dawn event in May, last year.

Den Building 30 May One of the garden team will be on hand to help create dens in the woodland for this #50things activity

Evening Garden Tour  8 July Drinks and canapés and a garden tour led by Head Gardener, Andy Lewis

Wild Animal Home 6 Sept Join one of the garden team to learn about and make some natural habitats in the woodland #50things

Hallowe’en Tunnel Trail – a time travelling whodunnit…24 Oct – 1 Nov.

Photo credit Clive Blott 

*Our CPI measures the condition of each of our conservation assets and sets a target for improvement.

Uppark garden awakes…

It’s been a busy period in Uppark garden since Christmas.

We’ve been clearing up after the festive events, hedge-laying in the upper car park, doing the groundwork for a new (second-hand) glasshouse, cutting back, pruning shrubs, generally tidying up the gardens and preparing for the coming year.

Above: The next phase of hedge-laying around the visitor car park was completed just before Christmas.

Below: Gardener Jenny on the mini-digger, excavating in preparation for the glasshouse base.

Subsequently, little time has been spent appreciating the garden in its winter setting.

So, I thought it was about time to go and have a look to see what’s on the move in the gardens at Uppark.

Above: Snowdrops (Galanthus sp.) and the pale yellow winter aconites (Eranthis hyemalis) are beginning to emerge near the scented garden

Above: Christmas box (Sarcoccoca hookeriana var. digyna) and snow on laurustinus or laurestine (Viburnum tinus)

The Snowdrops (Galanthus sp.) are about in abundance. Christmas box (Sarcococa confusa and Sarcoccoca hookeriana var. digyna) are doing well and I think benefiting from a lack of heavy snow. The Viburnum tinus is putting on a good show despite the recent snowfall and as always the winter aconites (Eranthis hyemalis) are providing patches of bright colour amongst the remnants of the autumn fall.

You may have already seen in the media coverage relating to flowering of plants indicating an early start to spring.  At Uppark the cold cloak of winter persists and there are few plants ready to emerge.

Soon it will be Valentine’s day and spring will not be far away and it’s this time of year that the National Trust carries out a flower count at some of its gardens to give an idea of what the season is like this year. So look out for further observations on National Trust gardens in winter.

In the eighteenth century, Valentine’s Day evolved into an occasion in which couples expressed their love for each other by presenting flowers. I’m sure the availability of flowers at this time was not as good as it is today and so it must have been a labour of love to search and find flowers in the middle of February.

Snow has finally come to Uppark and given the place a different look. Here are a few photos taken recently.

More Uppark winter photographs can be found in Uppark In the Snow 

Volunteer recruitment days at Uppark

From 7 March this year Uppark will be open 7 days every week (363 days per year) so we’ll have more opportunities for you to visit and get involved.

If you’re interested in joining the volunteer team here we have many roles on offer with two drop-in volunteer recruitment days on 20 February and 24 March between 10am-12.00pm in the Orangery café in the East Pavilion at Uppark.

Contact Uppark for more information on 01730 825415 (option 2) or email uppark@nationaltrust.org.uk

2014: A photographic review of Uppark garden

Garden volunteers Joy (left) and David (right)

Swags, Wreaths and Father Christmas at Uppark

This week the garden team are preparing for the Christmas season at Uppark. We’re decorating the stables for Father Christmas; he’ll be with us on 6, 7, 14 & 21 December from 11am – 3pm.

It’s all about the Swag…

We’re running two festive workshops this year; yesterday it was all about the swag. Becks from the catering team delivered an inspirational workshop full of great tips and ideas for dressing spaces for Christmas. The supporting cut flower team, led by Gardener Jenny, really enjoyed learning about this intriguing Christmas tradition.

…and Wreaths

Our wreath making workshop is today, we’re really looking forward to seeing the results of this second festive foliage event with all the foliage coming from Uppark garden. Below Judy and Assistant Gardener Jen during last year’s workshop.

Join Us at Uppark

Father Christmas at Uppark  – 6, 7, 14 & 21 December 2014 (11am -3pm)

 

 

 

 

 

Uppark: “A giant dolls’ house, perched high on a hill in an area of outstanding natural beauty…”

If you’ve visited Uppark this year thank you. It’s been a great year for us, with the exception of a few unsettled weeks in August, the summer was magnificent, the garden held up well and many people enjoyed Uppark House, Garden and the wide open space.

Our main open season has now come to an end. The contemporary art exhibition, unravelled has also finished. As a member of the short listing panel, I’ve loved seeing the third and final series of ‘unravelled’ installations in and around the house at Uppark.

I’ve also enjoyed reading the visitor feedback comments on the unravelled installations. Some have questioned the relevance and appropriateness of this work but the majority have found it inspirational and thought-provoking. As a former artist, I’m just delighted Uppark was chosen for this event.

The interventions have highlighted the multiple historical threads that shape the story of Uppark, there are so many fascinating characters and stories to chose from. This week, the team at Uppark met  with regional colleagues to try to define our ‘Spirit of Place’ – to consider what makes Uppark distinctive, unique and cherished. The final ‘Spirit of Place’ statement has not been agreed yet but we had many excellent contributions from a variety of sources. I favoured these lines to begin with:

“A giant dolls’ house, perched high on a hill in an area of outstanding natural beauty…”

Inspired by the words of one of the unravelled artist’s Matt Smith, who produced the ‘Bullock Buckets’ for the unravelled exhibition (below).

Uppark House and Garden is open on Sundays in November (11am-3pm) and then on selected dates in the lead up to Christmas, so check the website (or the 2014 handbook if you have one) for details before you travel.

The garden team will be running free garden talks at 12pm and 2pm (normal admission prices apply) on these days in November, we’ll be covering a little history and discussing our work. Come and join us if you’re free.

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Moved On – Autumn at Uppark House and Garden

South meadow taken by John Atherton during Tripods and Tapas event in early September.

The garden at Uppark, like any other, reflects an essential seasonal rhythm and our trees, shrubs, lawns and borders have been showing signs of encroaching autumn for some time. We’ve had a marvellous summer, we don’t really want to let it go, but rich rewards are on offer in return for a sad adieu. For those of us with a romantic disposition, the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, the replacement of exhausted summer with tawny autumn and the final onset of winter hold an enduring allure.

The summer that was.

Wonderful image taken by Ben Green of the cut flowers supplied to the Alitex annual dinner and lecture in September by the cut flower team at Uppark.

A series of pieces posted to the Uppark garden blog throughout the summer have celebrated the stunning progress Andy and his team have made over the past year. The new cut flower garden has provided the house with a steady stream of beautiful flowers and the house team has also been able to capture for themselves the heady fragrance of the sweet peas that have grown so well this summer in our re-invigorated scented garden. The dairy bank border has produced another glorious display (how could anyone fail to sense the seductive power of this corner of the garden?) and visitors have been thrilled by the success of the restoration border which many could scarcely believe is only just coming to the end of its first summer. The game larder bed is another new planting and this type of innovation, combined with the happy results of extensive renovations to the tea garden over time, have continued to impress and delight our visitors this year. Although still under review, even the portico bed in front of the house has been re-designed and planted this year.

Conservation Assistant Hana, grabs some rays and sweet peas from the scented garden this summer.

It’s been undeniably busy and since June and July were so hot I’ve loved being able to work in shorts and be temporarily relieved of the need to worry about waterproofs and the number of layers required to stay warm. Most importantly, our visitors have been able to relax in the heat, whether seeking shade or direct sunlight, and this has added to the sense of summer 2014 being a happy, happy time in the garden at Uppark.

 

Given the glories that combined to make summer 2014 such a successful one at Uppark, I’ve begun to wonder what the autumn and winter could possibly have in store that could recompense us for the loss of long hot days, short warm nights, sharp light and vibrant colour.

The autumn and winter that is to come.

One of Andy’s previous blogs outlines his plans for work to begin soon in preparation for next season : we can look forward to a significant new planting of daffodils to provide further large banks of vibrant spring colour, more hedge-laying is planned for October and plans are also in place to create an increased sense of light and space around the picnic tables by the ticket office by thinning some of the trees in this area.

Looking further afield, personally I’m looking forward to Alan Power once again describing the glories of autumn at Stourhead to Eddie Mair on Radio 4s PM programme. Back at Uppark and still on the theme of trees in autumn, my garden tour patter already includes the glorious colour into which our sugar maple is turning and although I’m not relishing the amount of leaf sweeping that’ll shortly be coming my way, I know that many shades of russet and gold, the archetypal colours of autumn, are soon to be enjoyed by visitors to both Uppark and the stunning countryside which surrounds our property.

Ultimately, it is the warmth of the autumnal colour palette, combined with the potential for truly warm days and subsequently misty mornings, which characterise what so many people will have been enjoying over the past few weeks and will continue to look forward to well into October also. Following that, there’s Halloween fun to be had in the tunnels and think back, also, to the sight of Uppark on a clear frosty morning, the house dressed for Christmas, Santa in the stables, mulled wine, lights……

Pink is the colour…

Spider webs and wonderful floral displays: Autumn drifts in to Uppark and the house is adorned with beautiful flowers.

Gorgeous floral arrangements

Perfect pinks

Beautiful muted tones of pinks, whites and greens.

A Bit of Garden Magic

Sunflower ‘Sunbright’, beautiful and ready for cutting.

Every now and again, it’s nice to reflect on how our gardening endeavours transform outdoor areas. Often, that transformation is slow, taking months and years or even decades. Occasionally though, we can enjoy a little instant magic; plants that give an immediate impact or planting schemes which look at their best for just a few short weeks, fading quickly – but not before bringing pleasure to those who see them.

Over the last few weeks I’ve enjoyed seeing different rates of transformation; from helping with an ‘instant’ garden for Hampton Court Flower Show to planting for temporary display with the garden team at Uppark. I’ve also been working with Judy and Liz planting in the cutting garden, an area which has been transformed over recent years from a mass of overgrown laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) to a productive area.

Hampton Court Flower Show

Last week, I helped garden designer and Uppark garden volunteer Kate Hart to plant the garden she designed for the Alitex display stand at Hampton Court Flower Show. When we arrived on Thursday, the Alitex team had already built a ‘Mottisfont’ greenhouse, shed, pergola, paths and a seating area – a magical transformation in itself. Our task, was to implement Kate’s plan and create a garden which felt permanent and mature in just a few days.

Kate and Alison start laying out plants for the Alitex stand at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show

As it turned out, this was half gardening and half conjuring trick. We had hundreds of beautiful plants to fit in to a series of boxes – which acted like raised beds. Unlike conventional gardening, we needed to plant as closely as possible to create the illusion of maturity. I found it amazing just how many plants we managed to fit in to such a small area, but by the end of Day One we had planted up nearly all the boxes.

At the end of Day One, Kate, Alison and me with the planted crates, ready to be concealed by woven willow panels.

Although we’d planted them, I still found it amazing on Friday morning arriving back at the Hampton Court site to see the Prairie style planting looking like a permanent fixture. The illusion was completed in this area with the addition of woven willow panels to conceal the numbered planting crates. Through another scorching hot morning, I enjoyed helping Kate plant other sectors of the garden. By early afternoon the garden was almost complete, it was hard to believe that a week earlier, the plot had been grassland. Although it feels unusual to plant for such temporary display, the garden is designed to be moveable and will be on show again at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show.

Transforming the Game Larder Bed

Over the winter, the garden team did a lot of clearing of overgrown shrubs. One of the areas we worked on is the border between the Tea Garden and the Game Larder. After a lot of effort, the stumps and the most of the roots of these overgrown shrubs had been removed and the ground had been prepared and mulched ready for planting. We decided to plant a temporary scheme in this area, to provide colour and interest while we make longer term plans.

The main component of the planting scheme is a wide ribbon of Salvia farinacea ‘Victoria’ which we raised in a greenhouse at Alitex. Behind the Salvia farinacea ‘Victoria’ we have planted Hemerocallis and Achillea ‘Cloth of Gold’. Both of these plants were reused from elsewhere in the garden, having spent the winter ‘heeled in’ in the cutting garden. Although it was hot when we were planting, the plants are establishing well having had their planting holes well puddled, and some watering during hot spells.

Salvia farinacea ‘Victoria’ with the flower bud forming. Grown from seed by the Uppark garden team at Alitex.

At the end of the border nearest to the game larder we used plants that the garden team propagated in one of the display greenhouses at Alitex. We planted Cistis x hybridus, Salvia officianalis purpurascens, Sedum ‘Herbsfreude‘ blue and white forms of Agapanthus  and Teucrium fruticans (wall germander) We have planted the plants slightly closer than we might if the planting scheme was permanent and I think that the plants are already starting to transform the border into a feature which catches the eye and balances the established border on the opposite side of the drive.

 

The Game Larder Border, planted up at the end of June

Cut Flower Garden

I have written before about the garden team’s work in the cut flower garden. This area is part of a long term project to transform a previously uncultivated area from a mass of laurel to productive part of the garden where we can grow flowers for cutting for display in the house.

Judy and me sowing seeds of hardy annual plants earlier in the year.

 

The same area of the cutting garden a few months later.

Because we sowed lots of seeds of annual flowering plants back in the spring, the cutting garden is beginning to fill up with the lovely shapes and colours of flowers such as Centaurea cyanus ‘Red Boy’:

The last few batches of plants raised at Alitex were planted out this week. Liz, Judy and I worked on planting Antirrhinum ‘Sonnet White’ and ‘Rocket Mixed’, Monarda lambada, Rudbeckia ‘Cherry Brandy’, and Dianthus barbatus ‘Hollandia Mixed’. In just a few days the plants seem to have put on a lot of growth, so hopefully it won’t be long before they can be transformed into beautiful flower arrangements for the house.

Antirrhinum ‘Sonnet White’.

If you would like to be involved in the Cut Flower Project, cutting and arranging flowers for the house then there is an opportunity to join the team at Uppark for a Cut Flower Volunteer taster day on Friday July 25th. If you are interested, please call the garden office on 01730 826940 or email uppark@nationaltrust.org.uk