YORKSHIRE GARDENS TRUST NEWSLETTER Issue 22 New Series 5 Winter 2008 Inside this issue: People and Gardens: The Yorkshire Connection Chairman’s Letter 3 Throughout history, York- to incorporate a water They created pieces of shire and its people have parterre. Its still reflective the English countryside, Kiplin Hall 3 contributed enormously waters mirror the classi- with their sparkling lakes, to our country’s garden cal style of the Temple of serpentine rivers, swathes development and heritage, Piety, a garden building of lawn and clumps and Gilly Drummond 4 providing us with fine gar- indicative of the Palladian belts of trees. dens, nurseries, design- style of architecture so ers, plantsmen and plant popular in gardens of this One of the first important Middlethorpe Hall Gar- 5 collectors. period. Castle Howard, ‘informal flower gardens’ dens Duncombe Park, Rievaulx laid out in the 1770’s The county supports a Terrace also have their and 80’s was Nuneham Duncombe Park 7 wonderful range of gar- Temples and Rotundas, Courtney in Oxfordshire, dens covering most of the but here they are set in designed by the Rev.Wil- design periods. Newby much more informal land- liam Mason, born in Hull Sheffield Botanical Garden 8 Hall in North Yorkshire had scapes, those at Castle in 1725. He became the a fine seventeenth century Howard being the product Canon and Precentor of Going Beyond First Impres- 9 formal garden designed by of the renowned designer York between 1757-72 and sions Peter Aram, a disciple of Sir John Vanbrugh. had many accomplish- the Le Notre style. It pre- ments including music, Brodsworth Hall with 10 sented a simple arrange- The Yorkshire man Wil- writing and painting. He Iranians ment of grass plots and liam Kent, born in Bri- advised William Weddell at several avenues, one of dlington, was another Newby Hall on the gardens Otteringham Hall 11 which still survives today. notable designer of the there in 1782. Weddell At Bramham Park, Rob- early part of this period. was famous for his collec- ert Benson, the first Lord He laid out some important tion of antique sculpture, Cusworth Hall and Park 12 Bingley, had the gardens landscapes at Chiswick which he formed on his laid out in an equally for- House for Lord Burling- Grand Tour in 1765-66 and mal style, making wonder- ton and Stowe Gardens for the special gallery he Midsummer Visit and 13 ful use of radiating Beech in Buckinghamshire for had built for it, together Picnic hedged avenues and flat Lord Cobham. He chose with other conversions, by Rye Hill 14 formal sheets of water. to use many buildings to Robert Adam. ornament his gardens, The eighteenth century thus creating a series of Of course we will always Committee Round-up 14 saw the development of three-dimensional pic- be indebted to the efforts gardens in the more tures, which unfolded as of Captain James Cook informal English Land- the garden visitor followed with his Staithes and Beaumont Park 17 scape Style; the only style a serpentine route. Whitby connection. His it seems, that we have first voyage of explora- ever exported abroad. This The Landscape Style, can tion in the Whitby ‘cat’ the Scarborough Valley Road 17 county is particularly well be seen at its most natural Endeavour, took him to the Gates endowed, with an early in the parklands surround- South Seas from 1768- example found at Studley ing Harewood House, 1777. He had on board, Londesborough 18 Royal near Ripon. Here, Ripley Castle, Temple the young Joseph Banks John Aislabie, the then dis- Newsam and several oth- and a team of botanists Captain Cook Memorial 19 credited Chancellor of the ers which bear the signa- and scientists. They were Museum Exhibition Exchequer, had the valley ture of Lancelot ‘Capability’ able to collect previously of the River Skell flattened Brown and his followers. (Continued on page 2) PAGE 2 NEWSLETTER ISSUE 22 People and Gardens: The Yorkshire Connection cont (Continued from page 1) ough Hall in the Yorkshire Dales. In and showcased our gardening his- unseen plant material from New the early 1900’s he went on plant tory, with the formation of the Mu- Zealand and Australia. So produc- hunting expeditions to China and seum of Gardening, the inspiration of tive was a visit after weighing anchor Burma and enhanced our gardens the late Pippa Rakusen. at a bay on the Australian coast, that with many new species such as Cook was prompted to rename it Buddleia alternifolia and Viburnum The establishment of the Yorkshire ‘Botanists or Botany Bay’. farreri. The late Hon. Robert James Gardens Trust in 1997 reflected sponsored two other notable plant a growing national interest in our Whilst new plants were being intro- collectors, George Forrest and Frank gardening heritage, and today the duced, old favourites were being Kingdon Ward who added greatly formation of the Parks and Gardens saved and brought to new standards to the delights of his garden at St. UK Project, based in York, is aim- of perfection by a notable Florist So- Nicholas, Richmond. ing to provide a national information ciety in York. Florists met to show Web resource on historic parks and their choice blooms at the ‘Florists’ Other legends of the horticultural gardens from contributions country- Feasts’ in the inns and public houses world have their Yorkshire connec- wide. of York. The Ancient Society of York tion. The Harkness nursery, famed Florists was founded in 1768 and is for its development in roses, first The list goes on of the remarkable the oldest surviving society of its kind established itself at Leeming Bar achievements of gardening exploits and in many ways the precursor to and the diligent George Russell of in Yorkshire, and this country owes the horticultural shows with which we Stillington eventually dazzled the much to its endeavours. are all familiar today. gardening world with his ‘Russell Lupin’ in 1937. Marilyn A Elm York was also the home to one of the most famous nurseries in the coun- In 1946, the establishment of the try, the Telford and then Backhouse Northern Horticultural Society and its nurseries, founded in 1660 and exist- gardens at Harlow Carr, Harrogate, ing till the 1950’s. They were par- furthered our gardening expertise ticularly noted for their rock garden con- structions, and the Victorian plantswoman Ellen Will- mott of Warley Place, Essex, used them on her own estate and notably at Newby Hall. Here, she was commissioned to oversee the design of its rock garden which remains to this day as a wonderful period piece. Rock gardens were of particu- lar interest to the Yorkshire plant collec- tor Reginald Farrer, born at Inglebor- View of Bramham Park taken from one of the water cascades that will be the subject of a forthcom- ing visit see p20 for more details PAGE 3 NEWSLETTER ISSUE 22 Chairman’s Letter January 2008 First let me wish you all a very happy Woodlands, and Countryside. Since green space in a city. My grandson and peaceful New Year and thank his retirement in 2006 he remains Archie was desperate to kick his you for your continued support. The deeply committed to the Yorkshire football so we sought a small park passing year has been a good one for Gardens Trust and many other where beautiful trees grew and the the Yorkshire Gardens Trust attract- organizations including GreenSpace grass was well kept. As he practiced ing new members whom I espe- (a charity formed in 1999 dedicated in his newly acquired Roma Football cially want to welcome. Some I hope to parks and green space) where Club t-shirt I watched an elegant Ital- may wish to become more actively he holds the position of Chair of the ian lady of mature years pluck flowers involved with the Trust offering their Trustees. from a noble lime tree. Spellbound by skills in specific fields; if so I urge the ritual, I observed her joy while fill- them to contact me. As we grow so In the last issue of London Land- ing her small wicker basket with their does our administration and I am well scapes, newsletter of the London fragrant blossoms: then, with an air aware that fellow council members Parks and Gardens Trust, Chris Sum- of immense satisfaction, she returned are fully stretched. I particularly want ner, its newly appointed Chairman, to a nearby block of sterile looking to thank them for giving up so much wrote about the therapeutic value of flats where, presumably, she would of their time. parks and gardens and the solace delight in preparing an infusion from gained from working in one’s own the flowers (those of Tilia x europea Yorkshire Parks and Gardens are garden. After the death of his father contain many medicinal properties what we are all about but it is the he spoke of the need for space and and are known to cure insomnia and former I should like to focus on in this a feeling of connection to the natural headaches) - what better example of letter. Last year, through our small world. He pointed out that Victorian connecting to the natural world? grant scheme the Trust was able to philanthropists and politicians under- fund a number of worthy projects stood the importance of public parks Thanks to the Heritage Lottery Fund specific to public parks, something especially for the poor who used (HLF) many of our public parks, in- we are extremely proud of. With this them as an escape from the squalor cluding Sheffield Botanical Gardens, strong commitment I am therefore and drudgery of that era.