{"id":9818,"date":"2022-04-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-26T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=9818"},"modified":"2022-05-12T09:59:59","modified_gmt":"2022-05-12T07:59:59","slug":"a-gardeners-weekend-in-the-lake-district","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/2022\/04\/27\/a-gardeners-weekend-in-the-lake-district\/","title":{"rendered":"A gardeners weekend in the Lake District"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How to spend a gardener\u2019s weekend in\u2026 <\/span><\/h4>\n\n

The Lake District<\/h2>\n\n

England\u2019s largest National Park is best known for its fells, lakes and hiking trails, but with several outstanding gardens, shops and eateries, it also offers more sedate pleasures<\/p>\n\n

COMPILED BY KENDRA WILSON<\/p>\n\n

<\/div>
\n

Insider tips<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Best breakfast or lunch <\/strong>Yew Tree Barn<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best village for gastronomy <\/strong>Cartmel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best bluebells <\/strong>Rusland Valley<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best plant nursery<\/strong><\/strong> Abi & Tom\u2019s Garden Plants<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best farm shop <\/strong>Low Sizergh Barn<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

Despite its quantity of visitors, there is a stillness to the Lake District that prevails, at least at dawn and dusk. Writing from Dove Cottage on 17 May, 1800, Dorothy Wordsworth noted: <\/span>\u2018Grasmere was very solemn in the last glimpse of twilight; it calls home the heart to quietness.\u2019 The meditative pull of water, mountains and woods is now more valued than ever.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Wordsworth Grasmere.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

English pastoral<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Miss Wordsworth was a keen gardener, and the steep bit of land behind Dove Cottage, which she shared with her brother William, was a microcosm of the wider landscape.<\/p>\n\n

Recently restored (and renamed Wordsworth <\/strong>Grasmere), <\/strong>the cottage is an essential stop, as is Beatrix Potter\u2019s farmhouse at <\/span>Hill <\/strong>Top. <\/strong>Both give some insight into traditional life and the importance of this area as a managed landscape, dominated by sheep farming (as described in James Rebanks\u2019 best-selling English <\/em>Pastoral). <\/em>Another visionary, John Ruskin, made his final home and garden at Brantwood, <\/strong>on the shores of Coniston Water, accessible by boat.<\/p>\n\n

Near the east shore of Windermere, Blackwell <\/strong>is a notable Arts and Crafts house, while Rydal <\/strong>Hall <\/strong>boasts a 17th-century viewing platform over a waterfall, fondly called the <\/strong>Grot.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Levens Hall.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Excursions and provisions<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

The landscape between Coniston Water (including Ruskin\u2019s house) and the southwestern shores of Windermere makes excellent walking.<\/p>\n\n

In May, the restored and newly created trails of <\/span>Rusland <\/strong>Valley <\/strong>lead through acres of undisturbed bluebells in traditionally managed woodland. Further south, the Arnside <\/strong>and <\/strong>Silverdale <\/strong>Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is the place for wildflower and butterfly spotting.<\/p>\n\n

Levens Hall <\/strong>is justly famous for its 18th-century topiaries, but it also has a deer park that was laid out at the same time. Another feature, for hungry walkers, is the Kitchen caf\u00e9, (and the Goat <\/strong>Shed <\/strong>for takeaways).<\/p>\n\n

Amid the formal splendour of Holker <\/strong>Hall <\/strong>and its park, good food also awaits, with a click-and-collect service for the best local produce (A Day\u2019s <\/strong>Walk), <\/strong>as well as Holker\u2019s own food hall and Courtyard Caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Lowther Castle.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Grand tour<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Somewhat further north, the Lowther estate has turned its ruined castle into the focal point for gardens that are slowly yet dramatically evolving. Benefitting from a 20-year landscape masterplan by Dan Pearson, the latest addition at Lowther Castle <\/strong>is a Sleeping Beauty-inspired rose garden. Morecambe Bay, <\/strong>back in the southern part of Cumbria, has a microclimate that allows the growing of exotics at Yewbarrow, <\/strong>giving it an adventurous outlook, including its trial beds, olive grove, Italian garden and more. Nearby, the Grange Plant Centre is one of two locations for Abi & Tom\u2019s Garden Plants, <\/strong>this one specialising in pot displays as well as a wide selection of the home-grown hardy herbaceous perennials for which they are known \u2013 and which can be appreciated in designed beds at their headquarters, Halecat Nursery, on the Witherslack Estate.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Inglefield Speciality Plants.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Dry goods and perishables.<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

To the northwest of Kemble, Inglefield Speciality Plants <\/strong>comes generously recommended by Tom Attwood of Abi & Tom\u2019s. The Speciality is partly about scale and impact, with large specimen plants and trees, outsized containers and statuary. Yew Tree Barn <\/strong>takes this a step further with upscale garden reclamation (as well as quality food at Harry\u2019s Caf\u00e9 Bar). <\/strong>Nearby Cartmel <\/strong>is known for its independent shops with a leaning towards food, while Armstrong Ward, <\/strong>o the high street in Kendal, requires extra time for browsing. Notable food is never far away; stop at Kendal\u2019s inspiring deli, Baba Ganoush. <\/strong>On the road south towards Levens Hall, the National Trust offers more walking, naturewatching, and an immaculate castle at Sizergh, while nearby Low Sizergh Barn <\/strong>is a dream of a farm shop and dairy, specialising in raw milk.<\/p>\n\n

PHOTOGRAPHS: DAVID LYONS \/ ALAMY STOCK PHOTO; ALEX RAMSAY \/ ALAMY STOCK PHOTO; CLAIRE TAKACS; SARAH TULLIS \/ INGLEFIELD PLANTS.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

England\u2019s largest National Park is best known for its fells, lakes and hiking trails, but with several outstanding gardens, shops and eateries, it also offers more sedate 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