Island Life Magazine Ltd October/November 2006 | Page 62

GARDENING

Mottistone
gardens “a
work of art”
“Mottistone Manor Garden, which is
owned by the National Trust, is one of the
most magical gardens on the Island.”

62

Mottistone Manor is set in a sheltered
valley with views to the sea. The gardens
with their colourful borders, shrub-filled
banks and grassy terraces surround an
Elizabethan manor house.
As the manor is tenanted it is only open to the
public one day a year, on August Bank Holiday
Monday, but the gardens can be visited each day
from Sunday to Thursday until 29th October.
They are well-worth visiting regularly to witness
the seasonal changes and during October the
autumnal colours of the trees and shrubs provide
a splendid backdrop for the flowering borders.
Following the planting last December of 18 olive
trees (one for each volunteer at the garden) Head
Gardener Robert Moore has been experimenting
this year with plants from the Mediterranean
and southern hemisphere to see which are most
adaptable for climate change. This has also meant
that the garden was not affected by the recent
hosepipe ban!
There is a small, but thriving organic kitchen
garden overseen by a resident scarecrow and for a
fitting memento of your visit there is a plant sales
area. Although aimed at younger visitors, all ages
enjoy looking for the hidden flowerpot people
(with names such as Shallot Church and Brittany
Shears), and older children can become ‘Garden
Detectives’ by borrowing an explorer pack and
completing the activities it contains.

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