| Gardens of a nether world |
|
|
|
One day you are a businessman, the next you have stumbled across a unique garden from the past. Will investing in its restoration pay off? Wendy Dare looks at the story of Dewstow Gardens in Gwent. Seven years ago a farmer and businessman, Elwyn Harris, and his sons, Mark and John, bought a piece of land in Caldicot, near the Severn Bridge in Gwent. They found rocks that are not rocks - they are Pulhamite - and holes that are not holes - they are tunnels. In fact, they had discovered real buried treasure: a hidden, lost, underground garden. Forget Frances Hodgson Burnet and her Secret Garden. This Sleeping Beauty is genuine fantasy.  Few photos remain of the original house & glasshouse Uncovered mysterySo who created this mysterious garden? Henry Oakley, its even more mysterious former owner, bought the little house with its lovely views over the Severn in the 1890s. We know Henry Oakley had an interest in ferns and tropical flowers, but so little else is known about him that we can assume he was reclusive.And why the tunnels? Maybe he knew of the picturesque grottoes along the Thames, originally inspired by Alexander Pope at Twickenham. Perhaps it was the romantic tunnel at Stancombe - not far away - that made him want to delve underground. Maybe, as a director of Great Western Railway, Oakley appreciated the recently built (1873) Severn tunnel and wanted one of his own. No one really knows. The Pulham family landscape business was just the one to create something original for him. They had been inventive in the 'garden industry' since 1865. We know that the Pulhams were involved, presumably right from the beginning, but these tunnels are completely different from any of their other work, which was mainly creating rockeries, chasms and grottos. Between the wars the garden declined. During the Second World War, after Oakley's death in 1940, all the remaining tunnels were filled in - in part by spoil from the new M4. With the land still needed for farming, the tunnels virtually disappeared. While nobody knows the truth of the garden's origins, rumours surrounding it had existed in the area. The Harris family just wanted the land to connect recent purchases of farmland either side of it and in 2000 all that could be seen of the garden was the remains of lakes and ponds, rocks and unexplained bumps.  One tunnel entrance, however, was partly accessible. Tentatively excavating, they quickly discovered the true nature of the 'rocks'. They were Pulhamite - an artificial rock render developed by the Pulhams, which could be made to match native stone and was much cheaper for use in rockeries, for example, than real stone. The Harris family are down-to-earth farmers and businessmen, but one can sense the excitement that must have gripped them as they uncovered more gems - a dark tunnel leading to a lighter grotto, then to a cave with a bog at the bottom, then more darkness with chinks of light, and so on and on. Eventually, they brought in horticultural assistance and expertise in order to try to obtain some historical exactness - a difficult task as most of the Oakley records and the Pulham records had been destroyed. The garden, however, was known to have been unique. On the ground level, there were many rock gardens, ponds, water features, ornamental areas, tropical glasshouses and a vast variety of plants, shrubs and trees from around the world. But it is only when you go below these gardens, and you enter the subterranean world underneath, that you begin to understand the extent of the vision and enormous amount of work and skill involved. "Dewstow Gardens were unique at the turn of the 20th century and as far as we know are still unique at the start of the 21st," says John Harris. Unexpected delightsToday a visitor's first sight of the garden is of a small colonial-style house on a slight rise overlooking the Severn, with rockeries, ponds and hidden walks. But then the fun starts. Like the White Rabbit in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, you disappear down a hole, dark with twists and turns. At one point the darkness opens into a 'chasm' with well-chosen bog plants. Go another way and there is a 'crocodile pit' with seductive shallow trays of water and little stepping stones.In another direction, interlocking caverns allow light in through slits in the roof. Some contain warm-climate plants such as Streptocarpus or ferns, including eye-height Dicksonias, which we can assume Oakley would have loved. At ground level a rockery and alpine garden is all the more amazing when you know that it was recovered from under a concrete farmyard. So what of the future? Dewstow faces the dilemma of all gardens open to the public. The garden of 2.8 hectares (7 acres) requires a full-time staff of three. Compliance with Health & Safety regulations, marketing and buying in the expertise needed to develop the gardens do not come cheap. Says John Harris: "After buying Dewstow House in 2000, and discovering various tunnels and grottoes etc, we arrived at the point where we either had to continue with the project, or fill it all back in again." But by then, the site had been listed as Grade 1 by CADW (Wales's equivalent of English Heritage), so there was really only one way to go - and without a penny in grant aid. "We've only been open properly to the public for one season - last year we had around 5,000 visitors. It is lovely to see the gardens develop and to hear the very positive feedback from visitors. This year will give us a better insight into the progress of the gardens and to see if they have a future as a visitor attraction."  Visitors inevitably fall under the gardens' spell and leave enthusiastic comments: "A perfect combination of plants and the underworld... spellbinding... A magical garden... great beauty tended with loving care... Water features beyond belief... One of the most magical and amazing gardens we have ever seen!" The Harris family have recreated something truly unique that deserves to flourish. Wendy Dare has been a judge at Chelsea and maintains her own garden at Mill Dene Blockley in Glocestershire, which is open to the public from April to the end of October - visit www.milldenegarden.co.uk. She also organises B&B packages for garden lovers for groups of 4-6 people. For details visit www.milldene.co.uk. Dewstow Gardens are open for general viewing on Wednesday-Sunday and Bank Holidays until the end of September. Adults £6, Concessions £5. WI groups must be pre-booked but will still be taken after the closure date and will receive an introductory talk. Visit www.dewstow.com/gardens.htm Pull Quotes
|
