Nunnington Hall
Variations on an organic theme
2 August 2023
By: James Lennox
How do you make your umpteenth garden stand out from the crowd? It’s a problem that must keep garden designers awake at night with every new commission. Do they just trot out all the usual ingredients and collect their fee for a job well done, or do they try something a bit different and risk disappointing a less adventurous client?
Now imagine you’re responsible for around 180 gardens and parks spread across the country and have millions of clients all expecting to be impressed on their day out. Do you stick to a tried and tested formula, or do you branch out and introduce some novelty to your offering?
That was clearly the dilemma the National Trust faced when deciding what to do with the garden at Nunnington Hall. It could never be a second Hidcote, nor, devoid of rolling acres and eighteenth century garden structures, is it a Stowe. The solution? Jump aboard the organic train.
And that’s the USP here. The garden is one of the Trust’s first fully organic gardens, converting way back in 2002. Praiseworthy and attention-grabbing. But, 20 or so years later, what impact has this approach had on the garden itself as a horticultural space?
On the positive side, the garden has a wonderfully relaxed feel. The new entrance bridge over the river leads to an interesting grouping of specimen trees around the gravelled courtyard. Children are made to feel as welcome as the more usual grey-haired demographic. There’s a climbing frame hidden among the trees, information panels aimed at a younger audience, quirky scarecrows, educational compost heaps and traditional games (quoits, skittles and croquet) dotted around the grounds. And who doesn’t love an assortment of deckchairs on the generous lawn in front of the main facade of the house?
For the older visitor, there’s a substantial double mixed border running the entire width of the garden, packed with easy-going shrubs (Cotinus coggygria, Osmanthus x burkwoodii, assorted hydrangeas), as well as great clumps of herbaceous favourites (Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’, Eupatorium purpureum, ligularias and hostas). There are also, against sun-soaked walls, clematis, roses and fruit as well as more tender items, such as vines and a fan-trained cistus, a rather novel treatment. And, as is de rigueur in any self-respecting organic garden, there’s a well-stocked potager.
All good stuff and just what you’d expect in a garden of this size. Either side of the central lawn and a couple of magnificent walnut trees are two areas dedicated to fruit trees, mainly free-standing apples and pears. And this is where we start to question some of the choices made at Nunnington Hall.
None of these trees, particularly the more recently planted ones, look all that healthy - in fact, some of them look downright unwell. I’m not sure all of that can be laid at the door of the organic management regime. Perhaps the micro-climate just isn’t all that favourable, the garden being in a relatively damp and humid spot by the River Rye. Or perhaps the beneficial insects that help to keep on top of the nasties just haven’t reached critical mass yet - although if not by now, when will they?
Then again, it could be that the decision to leave the grass beneath the trees unmown might have something to do with it. Could the lush grass be depriving the trees of vital nutrients and water? Apparently sheep’s wool is placed around young trees to act as a weed-suppressing mulch. I’m not sure it’s working.
Which leads to my main concern. There’s a danger that ‘organic’ as a guiding light can quite easily turn into a justification for a lack of basic maintenance, resulting in poor growth, underwhelming displays and a general air of dishevelment. There’s a temptation for cash-strapped organisations to cut costs under the pretext of saving the planet. And when it’s a choice between replacing a leaking roof and mowing the grass in the orchard or hand-weeding the border, it’s obvious which will, and probably should, win.
The problem is when this approach, under the guise of organic management, is allowed to jeopardise the quality of the garden - and bring the concept of organic gardening into disrepute. The fruit trees are suffering and, in another part of the garden, the irises are bound to follow suit, overwhelmed as they are by tall wildflowers shading out the rhizomes.
Striking a balance is key. I’m very much in favour of eschewing chemicals in the garden (and practise this approach myself) but that doesn’t mean the gardener can down tools, sit back and watch the weeds grow. I imagine there are severe budgetary constraints at play here and there is only so much a team of rather elderly volunteers can accomplish, so some slack should definitely be cut. Surely a garden open to paying punters should maintain some minimum standards, regardless of whether chemicals are banned. Or, perhaps I’m the one out of tune with the more laissez-faire approach that seems to be creeping in to public gardens like bindweed in a border?
Wildflower meadows have their place, but is that really right in front of the main facade of a historical house? My main gripe is aesthetic. Try as you might to incorporate a meadow into a decorative scheme, they look dreadful from the middle of June until they’re cut in August or even later, coinciding exactly with the peak garden-visiting season. Leaving the grass and seed heads might be essential for the display of wildflowers the following May, but it’s an absolute horror of flattened yellow and brown stalks in a garden context in high summer. An ecological triumph can still be an aesthetic disappointment.
Let me finish on a more positive note. I actually really enjoyed my visit here. The garden has a distinctly relaxed and welcoming feel. The planting on the whole is well-considered. There was much to admire, strolling along the generous borders, admiring the produce in the veg patch or simply soaking up the rays on the lawn. The contrast between cultivated and wilder areas is well-defined (although it could be even sharper).
There’s enough good stuff here to persuade anyone to give organic gardening a go. But, please, just for me, remember to keep a sharp eye on the more exuberant wildflowers and uninvited guests - billowing looseness can so easily tip into unruly shagginess.
More information here: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/yorkshire/nunnington-hall
