On 2013-02-15 13:45:33 +0000, Martin said:

On Fri, 15 Feb 2013 13:14:33 +0000, Sacha wrote:

On 2013-02-15 10:33:36 +0000, David Rance said:

On Thu, 14 Feb 2013 The Original Jake wrote:

On Thu, 14 Feb 2013 22:16:03 +0000, David Hill
wrote:

Watched a bit of this Prog on BBC 4 last night.
That's a garden I wont be going back to.
I remember it in its early days, well the 50's when if you were visiting
by car you parked at the side f the road, you went in under the archway
and left your donation on the trestle table that also had some plants
for sale.
It was a very good domestic garden that was in the throws of developing,
I sure I remember the white garden being planted, the lime walk was one
of the features.
At the time we lived just outside Hastings so it was in our visiting range
Now it looks like a large commercial venture.
David @ the sunny side of Swansea (or is that the moon?)

One feeling I often have when it comes to National Trust gardens is
that the powers that be seem fixated with the ethos of preservation as
is. In the case of a building, they may have a point though if that
building was still lived in, and unfettered by the NT thinking, the
decor would change a bit, the furniture would change a bit and so on.
There is an element of "unreal", albeit countered by the preservation
of "history".

But isn't this what the public wants? Don't they want to see the very
chairs, tables, etc., that the famous actually sat in? In Jane Austen's
house, for instance, don't people want to see the actual table at which
Jane wrote?

As long as that's what they really are seeing. I don't mean in the case
of Jane Austen's house, btw, because I have no idea. Many 'statelys'
are handed over with a lot of the furniture taken by the families who
have moved out into smaller, less unwieldy properties and kept the good
pieces to pass on down through the generation. One of my favourite NT
houses is Lanhydrock which is more than worth a visit. It gives the
impression the family has just popped out for a walk and will be back
any moment because it's so well-furnished and there are books, gloves,
hats etc. lying around. But a steward told me that almost nothing there
is the original furniture.

Fountains Hall was handed over to the NT fully furnished. The last
time we visited, the downstairs room was a visitors reception area and
the upstairs rooms were no longer accessible to the public because
they are used by the NT for storage.
Next door, Studley Royal Water Garden was returned to something like
the original design by felling and burning many mature trees. It looks
very nice now, but so did what was there before.
Once we drove 2 hours to Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Garden
once only to find that when we got there both had shut early because
they had been rented for the evening for a private function. We find
that sort of thing unacceptable.
When Avebury Manor was taken over by the NT it and its gardens were
no longer open to the public. The tenant screamed at us to get out of
"her garden".

The issue of what to preserve and what to return to its former state is
always a thorny one when a 'committee' is involved. My husband knew
the estate manager at Cotehele some years ago and there was a wrangle
over a particular tree for years. I'm not sure if it was ever
resolveed. One faction wanted it cut down as it hid Mrs D'Oyly Carte's
favourite view and the other wanted it retained as it was Mrs D'Oyly
Carte's favourite tree! One of the more irritating facets of the NT's
planning is their closing days. On one occasion we hoped to see
Cotehele, only to find it was their closing day. Now, of course, we
could have checked before leaving home had we planned that as the sole
reason for the trip but we were in the area anyway and it was a spur of
the moment decision. There were no signs to tell us the house was
closed because the shop and café were open and they want you to visit
those! On two or three occasions I've asked stewards why the NT
doesn't have an "everything shuts on Tuesday" policy and each has
agreed it would be a very good idea but the powers-that-be won't do it,
or just don't pick up on the suggestions. I did once email the NT
about it but didn't even get a stock reply. I think they do great work
btw and admire the volunteers who give up so much of their time. But I
do think it's probably a bit top-heavy in the bureaucracy department.
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk