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Garden/Grounds

When we first arrived at the hotel at the end of March 2006, it was evident that the hotels grounds were a little unloved. In fact it appeared as I approached the hotel as if the hotel had been closed for the winter. There were two circular beds at the front of the property each containing one small dead twig in the centre. The owner of the property for the previous eighteen months was good enough to show me all around the hotel and the grounds. I was told that the circular beds at the front of the hotel were impossible to grow anything in. 

This was the first challenge; the soil is very heavy and has a high clay content; this was dug over and sand was added to break up the clay and assist with drainage. We also added compost and gathered lots of the decaying leaves from the grounds to try to bring the soil back to life. As this is the first thing that you see on the approach to the hotel I wanted these beds to have some permanent planting and vibrant colour. We have achieved this by planting perennials in the centre and adding bedding plants around the outside to give that flash of colour. We are pleased so far with the progress in this area, with the perennials now in their second year and maturing well it now makes a welcoming approach to the property. Also with the addition of more seating here it is a truly relaxing place to sit and absorb the far reaching views across Hambleton Hills.

April 2006	April 2006	April 2006
September 2007	September 2007	September 2007

In the gardens at the rear of the property there is a large area of lawn which is dominated by two huge grafted beech trees, reputed to be the oldest grafted beech trees in the country; the exact age is not known, however their girth measures around five metres making them a significant age. The main house was rebuilt after a fire in 1824; the trees could have been planted at his time; however, as yet it has not been possible to find any facts about their age. Alongside these beech trees there are other specimen limes, oaks and yews arranged around the main lawn.

To the rear of the property there is an area of woodland of approximately three acres. This had been completely left to its own devises for many years. In this area there are many more specimen trees of ash, oak, lime, maple, chestnut and yew. We have now created a pathway through the woods and intend to have it finished over this winter. We aim to create several seating areas for our guests to be able to take in the many forms of flora and fauna that are in abundance here. There are many types of birds that live here, as well as many that pass through. In spring there are many snowdrops and bluebells. In the summer the wild woodland flowers attract a vast array of butterflies and other insects.

Summer

Autumn

Winter

There is a two metre plus high wall along the side of the main garden that used to have greenhouses all the way along it.  The house was sold after the death of Benjamin Talbot, in 1947 and after his wife subsequently passed away in 1948.  There are pictures of these greenhouses in the details that were put together for the auction.  There are several remnants left from this era.  There are three fanned apple trees, which this year have produced a large crop of apples, which chef has used to make delicious crumble along with some of the many brambles that are on site.  There is also an old vine that was buried beneath many years of weed growth.  We have revived the vine and it is growing grapes.  I don’t think that we will have Chateaux Solberge this year; however perhaps in the future.

At one end of this wall there is a wisteria which spans approximately twenty metres, judging by the size of the roots and branches on this it has been here for many years. This was hidden behind herbaceous plants that had grown to proportions that completely hid the wisteria. During the month of May the entire wall is completely covered with flowers on this which really is a most beautiful sight.

In front of the wall there were several beds that had many herbaceous plants that had all been left to themselves for years.  In the first year of being here we left the beds to see what appeared throughout the year, being an old garden we wanted to wait and see if anything of any interest would come through, however, sadly nothing did.  In our second year we decided to replace the overgrown shrubs and herbaceous borders with something much more interesting. We agreed that with the age of the grounds that it would be fitting to plant old fashioned cottage garden flowering plants. We wanted to create several beds that each had a slightly different interest and colour scheme that showed flowering plants throughout the entire year. We are pleased with progress of these beds especially as they have only been in for six months; they have shown very well and have become well established to the point that we are now splitting many of the plants, taking cuttings from many others and have now created three more beds to accommodate them. It is our intention to continue to propagate our plants and use them to enhance our grounds in the years to come.

April 2006	April 2006	April 2006
August 2007	August 2007	August 2007

April 2006

August 2007

There is a raised bed running along the wall of around twenty metres, in which we have planted kitchen garden herbs, purchased locally from Newby Wiske.  They say the more you pick the more they grow, well everyday the chefs are taking large bunches to use in their cooking and indeed the herbs are really growing, very fast and large.  We plan many years of use from these.

April 2006

August 2007

October 2007

On the first day of ownership we uncovered a drain in the middle of a tarmac courtyard, that was completely blocked, after having this fixed we lost the permanent puddle that was there.  After the launch of Silks Brasserie and Stables Bar we decided to create an enclosed seating area ideal for sunbathing and relaxing.  We built a barbeque and made an undercover seating are of raised decking.  Also there is an al fresco dining area adjacent to Silks.

April 2006	April 2006	April 2006
May 2007	May 2007	September 2007

Future and Ongoing Projects

With the erection of our banqueting suite taking place over the winter we will be creating a formal garden to attach to this. 

We are developing the mature woodland at the very back of the property, to have paths and seating areas to be able to admire the many different types of flora and fauna that inhabit this area.

We are in the process of creating a vegetable plot to use on our varied menus throughout the hotel.  Our aim is to produce as much home grown organic fruit, vegetables and herbs as we can for our chefs to use on our daily menus.

We recycle all our vegetables trimmings and add them to the many leaves that fall, to use to grow more plants.

All in all we are pleased with progress of the gardens and grounds and are very proud to have won a Silver Award in the Yorkshire In Bloom competition.  With many thanks to David Hullah without whom this would not have been possible, with the assistance of Colin Lax.