We are delighted that we have been invited by Lord and Lady Heseltine to visit Thenford Arboretum.

The Heseltines bought the house and its surrounding garden in 1976, and for the next 25 years their priority was to restore the 40 acres of woodland, seeking advice from leading horticulturists including Roy Lancaster, Sir Harold Hillier and Lanning Roper. They also worked on the walled gardens, dredged the medieval fish ponds and cleared three metres of silt from the two-acre lake.

 

 

 

Since then, the Heseltines have greatly enhanced the quality of the collection and the arboretum is now spread out over 70 acres, comprising more than four thousand different trees and shrubs, as well as extensive herbaceous borders, water gardens, an alpine trough garden, a sculpture garden and a rill. The medieval fish ponds, their interconnecting canal and the existing lake have been restored, and two new ones have been added. An eighteenth century avenue of mature yews has been cleared of self-seeded shrubs and saplings and returned to its former grandeur.

This is a wonderful opportunity for Guild members to see a garden that is rarely open to the public.

Our visit will start at 11am with mid-morning coffee and an introduction from Lord Heseltine, after which we will explore the garden. Lord and Lady Heseltine are generously providing a light lunch for us, after which we are free to explore the garden further. There are no restrictions on photography in the garden.