In 1996 Aldersey House and Blue Cottage were divided into two separate properties. We moved into Aldersey House in March 1997. In 2010 we were able to acquire Blue Cottage, bring it back into the curtilage of Aldersey House and reunite the properties to sit in one unified garden. Blue Cottage needed significant renovation. And so did the garden.
Since then it’s been fourteen years of continuous, iterative, garden development to make two into one.
There has been no grand plan!
The main highlights can be described as follows:
- Removal of old swimming pool
- Planting new hedging
- Removal of the old pottery
- Removal of old stabling
- Removal of sundry outbuildings
- Laying new patios
- Building new walls (both brick and stone)
- Building new outbuildings
- Renovation of a vegetable garden
- Installation of the service area, compost bins and log store
- Installation of a fruit cage
- Laying out new paths and herbaceous beds (2012)
- Reconstruction of the sunken garden (2013)
- Building of Greenhouse and Potting shed (2014)
- Digging the large pond (2017)
- Building the pond house and decking (2018)
- Establishing new wildflower meadows (2021)
- Removing a lot of grass and establishing new herbaceous beds (2024)
Our approach to the garden has always been ‘naturalistic’. We have a fondness for roses, herbaceous planting, wildlife and have also wanted to make the most of the view up Saintbury Hill. Open, airy, plant-rich, supporting the natural world wherever we can.
Over the past ten years we have noticed a significant decline in the insect and invertebrate population in the garden. There used to be clouds of insects around the outside lights on a summer evening. There are hardly any now. We used to frequently see hedgehogs in the garden – there haven’t been any for years. Frogs and Toads are definitely less abundant (despite the ponds) and we think there are also fewer newts. We used to see grass-snakes in the pond. Sadly, they have disappeared. Last year, for the first time, we noticed there were far fewer bats around. Is this climate change? Aggressive use of pesticides and herbicides by modern farming methods? (Particularly when all that stands between our garden and a massive, intensely farmed, monoculture, forever sprayed field is a flimsy hedgerow). What to do..?
This winter we have removed a great deal of grass and developed four, new, large flower beds. It’s been a struggle over this wettest of winters. The soil is predominantly clay and we have incorporated a great deal of compost to help improve the soil structure. The grass we removed is stewing nicely in a turf stack in one of our compost bins, ready to be used as a mulch over the forthcoming winter.
We have planted nearly five hundred small herbaceous plants, grasses and some structural elements. We intend to let the plants develop into a rich, dense and thick floral sward to provide insect and invertebrate habitat. We will try and manage it as we do the wildflower areas: Let it go, let it be, and allow to do its own thing. Come late winter / early spring 2025 when everything has died back, we’ll scythe it down to regenerate anew. It’s the best idea we’ve been able to come up with to support the other life forms we share this precious space with.
We do hope you enjoy your time in our garden. We delight in sharing it with other garden enthusiasts during the NGS Froyle Open Gardens event. It’s always a challenge getting everything to look at its best for our garden guests to enjoy, but the appreciation and affirmation we receive makes all the hard-work worthwhile. In coming years, we hope to be able to add-in a private NGS Spring and Autumn Garden event to enable you to see the garden at different times of the year, so keep an eye on the Yellow Book!