OUT AND ABOUT GET GROWING
So, Nick, you look after three gardens for the National Trust, but how long have you been head gardener at Nunnington Hall?
I've been working at Nunnington Hall for just over 20 years, and I've been head gardener for about 15 of those. I started as assistant gardener and worked my way up, and I've taken on several other properties over the last five years.
The trust took over Nunnington in the 1950s. Do you aim to maintain it as it was then?
We're not really bound with a lot of historical precedent with the garden at Nunnington. There are certain areas that we know the family were very fond of, like the rose borders and the iris garden, which we do keep. But no, we have quite a lot of flexibility and there's been quite a big push over recent years to get more seasonal interest throughout the whole year. We're trying hard to get more nature and wildlife interest through the garden as well, so the visitors have got something to see at all times of the year.
It's such a relaxed garden and quite intimate. What do you put that down to?
I think it's the charm of the whole site, not just the garden but the house as well. It seems a very intimate place; it's not a big, grand, austere place that people feel intimidated by.
