Wiltshire’s Iford Manor garden opens for charity for 80th year

by

image caption, Tulips feature throughout the garden, which is Grade I listed

  • author, Karen Gardner
  • role, BBC News, West of England

A beautiful ‘secret garden’ is set to open to raise money for a charity for the eighties.

The garden at Iford Manor near Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, is open for the National Garden Scheme (NGS) on Saturday 20 April.

The scheme gives visitors access to more than 3,500 private gardens and supports nursing and health charities with the processes.

The owner of Iford Manor, William Cartwright-Hignett, said: “We love to support the NGS, but I am amazed to realize that this is the 80th year we have opened for the charity.”

He added: It’s a joy to see people discovering us for the first time even thought we were known in the world of gardening for a century.

image caption, The garden was redesigned a century ago by Harold Peto

The Grade 1 listed Italian style garden is located in a steep valley which accentuates the sunlight on the plants and architecture, especially in the morning and evening.

There has been a garden on the site for at least 400 years. The master was originally a woolen factory; and a pleasure garden and park were first created by the Gaisford family in the 1820s.

Tricia Duncan from the NGS said: “We have a surprise planned for the garden to thank you for its eight decades of supporting health charities.

“The garden is absolutely stunning, embellished with a collection of classical statues, pools, fountains, loggias, colonnades and statues, with magnificent rural views across the Iford Valley.”

image caption, People were asked to book in advance to see the garden

Harold Pinto designed the garden in its current form in the early 1900s and features inspiration from Italy and Japan as well as many traditional English plants.

“Since 1965, when my mother bought the house, my family has worked to restore, conserve and enhance the garden and improve biodiversity,” explains Cartwright-Higett.

“Eighty years ago, the proceeds from the special visitor days went to the nurses at Freshford Cottage Hospital and all these years later, we are delighted to share the beauty and tranquility of Iford with our NGS visitors “.

Organizers said people needed to pre-book website to visit on April 20.

image caption, The garden is famous for its steep valley sides

1 thought on “Wiltshire’s Iford Manor garden opens for charity for 80th year”

  1. Somebody essentially lend a hand to make significantly articles Id state That is the very first time I frequented your website page and up to now I surprised with the research you made to make this actual submit amazing Wonderful task

    Reply

Leave a Comment