Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden

Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden is a historic walled garden in Grappenhall, Warrington, Cheshire, England.[1] The garden was built by Thomas Parr around 1830 as both a pleasure garden for relaxing strolls and as a kitchen garden to produce fruit, vegetables, and herbs. After a period of decline, the garden was restored first by English Partnerships and then by the local parish council in conjunction with the friends of the garden.

Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden
The garden in winter
TypePublic garden
LocationGrappenhall, Warrington, Cheshire, England
Created1830
Operated byGrappenhall Parish Council
StatusOpen all year
WebsiteGrappenhall Heys Walled Garden

History

The walled garden was built around 1830[2] by Warrington banker Thomas Parr to accompany a mansion house.[3][4] Unusually, Parr included both a pleasure garden and a kitchen garden within the same boundary wall.[3][5] In addition to enjoying their garden, the Parr family held frequent galas and special events for the community. One annual event called "Beating the Bounds" involved a walk around the boundaries of the townships of Lymm, Appleton, and Grappenhall, which included the garden.[6] Historical records suggest that the estate was at its height from 1875 to 1899.[7]

By the 1950s, the estate had become derelict and parts of it were sold off.[3] The house was demolished in the 1970s and the garden passed to English Partnerships for renovation.[4] In 2005 control of the garden passed to Grappenhall and Thelwall Parish Council, which continued restoration in conjunction with a community group called "The Friends of Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden".[4] In 2012 the garden was given a Heritage Lottery Fund award towards repair of the Victorian glasshouses and completion of the restoration.[3]

Description

Pleasure garden

There is a pleasure garden with herbaceous borders, specimen trees, wooded copses, and three ponds.[5][8] An 1829 tithe map shows the ponds were originally marl pits created by small-scale marl extraction.[8] Over time the ponds became heavily silted up, but were sufficiently deep to obscure workers below ground level when they were eventually excavated during restoration.[9] The footpath around the pleasure garden was named the "Master's Walk".[10]

Kitchen garden

There is a kitchen garden which produces fruits, vegetables, and herbs, cultivated by the Warrington Organic Gardening Society.[5] Varieties of pear and more than 20 varieties of apple are grown in a small orchard.[5][11] Grapes and tomatoes are cultivated in fully restored glasshouses.[12] Surplus fruits and vegetables are sold to the public.[11]

Facilities

The garden is a popular attraction in Warrington.[13] Facilities include a cafe, toilets, and free access. In recognition of its high standards, in 2018 the garden was given its second Green Flag Award, a benchmark national standard for publicly accessible parks and green spaces in the United Kingdom.[14]

See also

References
  1. "Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden". Grappenhall and Thelwall Parish Council. 2018.
  2. Mackenzie, Paul (15 February 2010). "Secret garden in Warrington". Cheshire Life.
  3. "£961,000 to restore glasshouses at Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden (press release)". Heritage Lottery Fund. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  4. "Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden". Visit Chester. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  5. Darling, Jen (2007). Walks in West Cheshire and Wirral: Thirty Walks Through the Green and Varied Countryside of West Cheshire and Wirral. Northern Eye Books Limited. p. 35. ISBN 9780955355721.
  6. Information board at Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden.
  7. "Brief Introduction - Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden". Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  8. "Garden History". Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden. 2018.
  9. "History". Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden. 2018.
  10. "Grapenhall Heys" (PDF). Cheshire Gardens Trust. January 2016. p. 2.
  11. Simon, Kate; King, Suzanne (2018). Cheshire. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 263. ISBN 9781784770822.
  12. "About the Garden". Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden. 2018.
  13. Judd, Lydia (27 March 2018). "Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden tops Tripadvisor list of things to do in Warrington". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  14. Dunning, Gareth. "Walled garden given green flag award for second time". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
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