Howick Hall Gardens

It may seem like I've neglected gardens as a whole recently but the JibberJabber crew have been on tour. We've ventured along coasts, up hills and through woods to bring you a selection of some of the finest gardens in Northumberland and the Borders. First up a visit to a garden that combines some of my favourite things...

I've made it clear several times on this blog that I don't like coffee. In fact I hate it. I like tea. Not in great quantities and not in such a way that I get very adventurous with it. Primarily I like two types – the standard 'English Breakfast' type variety and Earl Grey. So a garden that combines a fine house, stacks of colourful planting, a fascinating ancestral heritage and lashings of Earl Grey tea means we were packed in the car on our way there despite the dark skies and strong winds.

Howick Hall Gardens is situated in a hamlet just a couple of miles inland from the Northumbrian coast. The house itself isn't open to the public except for the entrance hall, which serves as an excellent visitor centre, and the former ballroom which is now the tea room. The Grey family have lived in Howick since the 14^th century. In 1806 the earldom was created for General Charles Grey. It was Charles' son the 2^nd Earl Grey who made the name famous and not just for the tea.

I wrote about the 2^nd Earl Grey's achievements as part of my Sunday Snap series back in April. Earl Grey was a member of the Whig party who became Prime Minister, passed the Great Reform Act 1832 which saw the right to vote extended to more people and abolished slavery within the British Empire. Not bad for four years work. He also ordered an extension to be built onto the family seat at Howick in order to accommodate the many children he had with his wife Mary Elizabeth Ponsonby.

Apart from the Greys' first child, that was stillborn, the couple had 15 children who unusually managed to survive past infant-hood with many of them living long lives. Part of their longevity was attributed to the fresh coastal air at Howick and the quality of the water. Due to the high levels of lime in the local well water Lady Grey requested a tea to be specially blended in order to suit it. A formulation using orange bergamot was created and Lady Grey used it for entertaining purposes whilst in London. It went down a storm and the blend was sold for others to enjoy. Unfortunately for the Greys they never trademarked, patented or laid any legal claim to the tea blend and therefore over the years have never received a penny in royalties. The Earl Grey tea and additional creation of the Lady Grey blend has though made Twinings a fair few pounds over the years.

A lack of commercialism is actually something the Grey family are proud of to this day. Whilst in tea room I was reading the official guidebooks about the gardens and the arboretum. I realised these dated from around 2007 but I was keen on buying one to take home with me. I even read in the guidebook about their lack of commercialism. So could I find a copy of the guidebook for sale? Of course not.

I did wonder whether all this talk of commercialism was a bit of a dig at their more esteemed Northumberland neighbours at Alnwick. The millions that has been ploughed into the Alnwick Garden is no secret nor the fame that has been achieved by the current Duchess of Northumberland. The two families though have a long political rivalry with the now abolished parliamentary seat of Northumberland being held by both members of the Whig following Grey family and the Tory supporting Percys from the Northumberland ducal line.

The current inhabitants of Howick Hall are not Earl and Lady Grey but Lord and Lady Howick. When the 5^th Earl Grey died he had no son to pass the title onto so it went to his second cousin once removed Richard Grey. Howick Hall however was passed to the 5^th Earl Grey's daughter Lady Mary Grey whose husband Evelyn Baring was made Lord Howick in 1960. It is now owned and lived in by her son Charles, 2^nd Lord Howick and his wife Clare.

I became aware of the gardens at Howick Hall after watching the ITV programme Tales from Northumberland with Robson Green. Its appearance seems to have uncovered a secret since despite holidaying in Northumberland since 2005 I had never heard of Howick Hall before then. Although Northumberland is a large county I still don't know how I managed to miss this 2,500-acre estate.

The estate falls into two sections – the gardens and the Arboretum. Around the back of the house there are the borders and formal gardens. All are still in full bloom and scent with rows of agapanthus and bunches of lavender prominent.

On the day we visited Lady Howick's private garden was also open with donations going to the estate church. I did feel a bit awkward creeping about this space but there was another couple in the garden as well.

The borders here are stuffed full of a range of plants and flowers. There may be little structure to scheme but you can't deny the love and enthusiasm in here.

In these late summer days the brightest and most colourful part of the garden is the Bog Garden. With plants sourced from around the world it comes into its own at this time of year. This area always had wet ground so a it was only natural to dig a pond into the area.

If you cross over the water known as the Howick Burn you come to a new area planted this year. The hydrangeas are generously arranged with some delightful colours and varieties already on show. Within a couple of years this section should be quite spectacular.

If you have the time you could spend several hours walking the trails that make up the Arboretum. The area was opened in 2006 but somewhat amazingly most of the trees are planted in 1985 from seed collected from around the world. In total there are now around 11,000 trees.

I noticed at the entrance that an annual pass is available for £28. I have to say if I lived closer to Howick Hall I would certainly invest in one. The estate is huge and varied and we only touched on a small part of it. The planting has been designed to give interest right through the year but it's not just flora I was interested in. I'll share something else we spotted in the grounds with you next week...

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