Snowdrop season at Easton Walled Gardens
Nestled in the Lincolnshire and Rutland countryside, snowdrops at Easton Walled Gardens are the jewel in the crown of their winter displays.
Easton has been owned and managed by the Cholmeley family since 1561. In recent years, the family and community of Easton have dedicated their focus to restoring the Estate's historic spaces so it can continue to thrive in the future.
The hall and grounds were a natural sanctuary for injured soldiers convalescing during World War I. During World War II, the Estate was used as a barracks, during which time a large amount of damage was sustained - leading to the eventual demolition of the hall in 1951. Careful restoration and transformation since the early 2000s has brought Easton and its Walled Gardens back to life, for the community and the local environment.
From late January to March, Easton Walled Gardens plays host to drifts of delicate snowdrops. They emerge from a bulb formed in the previous March, after waiting patiently to flower for almost a year.
The walled gardens boast an impressive ten different varieties of snowdrops - something that they are very proud of. Lady Cholmeley said: "The gardens are in a beautiful valley surrounded by parkland and it seemed a shame to allow them to collapse. The underlying aim is to create biodiverse habitats and to explore the world of plants through gardening. Visitors come year after year to join us in celebrating a new year of flowers."
Easton is built on a team effort and Lady Cholmeley is looking to develop even further, with help from her team: "Tim Metcalfe-Kemp is our head gardener, who is ably assisted by senior gardener Sharon and part-time gardeners Rob and Ben. Our horticultural trainee, Chris Jesson, has just joined us. We are on very free-draining soil with lowish rainfall, so we are working on plans to develop a gravel garden."
From a war wreckage to a garden spectacle, Easton has proven that a once-ruined land can be turned into something of a sight to behold. It is an open invitation to lose yourself in the heady romance of hundreds of years of horticultural history.