A visit to RHS Bridgewater
At the beginning of July this year, Jane and Alison B journeyed up to Salford to see the newest RHS garden, Bridgewater. We were not blessed with the best of weather as it was overcast but this didn’t reduce our enjoyment.
The garden gets its name from the Bridgewater Canal which was built by Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere. The canal borders the garden, and was built to transport coal to Manchester and helped fuel the industrial revolution in the North West. Located on the site of Egerton’s Worsley New Hall, the huge garden surrounding the hall was landscaped over a long period by leading designers of the time.
After being requisitioned during both World Wars and falling into disrepair, the building became derelict and was demolished in the 1940s. In the interim, nature mostly reclaimed the gardens.
Fast forward to the 21st century and in 2017 the site of 154 acres was acquired by the RHS to create a world class garden for the north west, and work began. Landscape architect Tom Stuart Smith was employed and created a masterplan for one of the largest gardening projects in Europe, taking into account the history of the hall and grounds and reimagining the whole site. Numerous buildings or the remains of structures in the gardens that were left after the demolition of the house were incorporated, such as the huge Bothy chimney, the Cottage Garden, the enormous Potting Sheds, the stables and lake have all been restored and repurposed. Sadly the Glasshouses were beyond repair and had to be demolished and rebuilt.
Bridgewater is blessed with three equally distributed distinctive soil types:- sand based, alluvial clays and peaty loams, giving great possibilities for diverse planting. The garden also has a southerly aspect, again helpful for growing. While all this is good, the main ecosystems were at the beginning in a generally poor state of health; pesticides needed removing from the ground to encourage wildlife.
The pigs get to work in 2018
Interestingly, rare breed Berkshire pigs were used in the Orchard Gardens and the Middle Wood to provide a sustainable means to clear undergrowth and brambles while fertilising the soil.
At 154 acres to explore and after spending plenty of time in the Coffee Shop, where we met Cynthia and Graham Baker, former members of MHS who have moved to Worsley, then lingering over a delicious pizza at the Stables Cafe, we didn’t manage to visit every area.
Concentrating on the central area, we visited the Community Wellbeing and Grow Gardens for local people, then on through the wildflower garden to the Bee & Butterfly Garden and the Garden Cottages. Pausing only for the pizza, we continued to the old Frame Yard with its distinctive chimney and The Bothy which once housed apprentice gardeners who fuelled the fires to heat the glasshouses. Now this area is a bed for RHS trials, currently Hydrangeas (see picture above).
The new glasshouses are huge and impressive and lead on to the Paradise Garden which is part of Egerton’s original Western Walled Garden. Drawing inspiration from earliest gardens the Paradise Garden blends Mediterranean, Adriatic and American planting. This area has its own microclimate together with a beautiful lily pond, fed by two rills.
Moving on to more informal areas, we were drawn towards a Pagoda in the trees which is a music pavilion. This is the initial structure situated in the Chinese Streamside Garden, part of a seven acre site where both Chinese culture and plants such as bamboo and birch will be featured. Reflecting the involvement of the local Chinese community, this area will be a unique horticultural fusion where a stream and waterfalls meander slowly from the lake to the Moon Bridge Water while a sinuous path weaves its way over five stylised wooden bridges. This path took us back to the Welcome Building and the end of our visit.
It was most enjoyable day and a pleasure to see an RHS garden at this early stage of its development. Bearing in mind that Wisley was acquired by the RHS in 1903 and Hyde Hall in 1993, Bridgewater is certainly somewhat embryonic, having only been acquired in 2017 and work interrupted by Covid. Its potential is enormous and it will be very interesting to revisit in future and see how it grows.