Trentham Gardens

Trentham Gardens

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Posted 2015-08-03 by Tony Collinsfollow
They may no longer have a stately home to accompany them, but the surviving formal gardens at the Trentham Estate are something to behold and enjoy in themselves.



Designed by none other than the renowned landscape architect Lancaster 'Capability' Brown, the award-winning near Stoke on Trent in Staffordshire is definitely not to be missed.

The gardens are largely dominated by the mile-long Trentham Lake, which Capability Brown was commissioned to design by the then Lord of the manor in 1759.



He created a couple of islands in the middle of the lake, one of which is now home to a heron colony.

The lake can be circumnavigated by a two-mile long walk, which peels off along the way to provide atmospheric woodland trails complete with some very unusual sculptures made from natural materials.



Less natural in terms of materials are the 15 metallic Fairies dotted around the landscape, some of them in very unusual locations such as up a tree or dangling from wires. It certainly pays to look up as well as down when walking around these gardens.



The lakeside walk brings visitors to a beautiful meadow area rich in colour from the thousands of poppies, cornflowers and other flowering plants.

This area, gorgeous as it is, is in the process of being improved as part of a project to mark the 300th anniversary of Capability Brown's birth next year.



The aim of Trentham Estate is to create a lasting landscape legacy in the ground in the run up to 2016 with the first phase being to restore the connection between the upper west side of the lake and the 18th century parkland.

The site also boasts the more formal, but equally stunning Italian Gardens complete with fountains which were designed to be seen from Trentham Hall.

Although the building was sadly demolished more than a century ago after falling into ruin, visitors can still enjoy the historic view of the Italian Gardens courtesy of a wooden viewing platform built specially for the purpose.



There are plenty of other attractions for visitors of all ages to enjoy, from the colourful Floral Labyrinth and boat trips on the lake, to the wonderful array of shops just outside the entrance.

And for younger visitors, apart from hunting down the fairies they can also go on a barefoot walk, enjoy a miniature train ride, or have fun in the exciting adventure playground which offers children the chance to tackle the assault course, fly down the zip wire, or get lost in the hide and speak maze.



Music fans also have reason to visit this summer with a series of Hot Summer Saturday dates up until September 5.

Next up is a Soul & Motown concern on Saturday 8 August, followed by Tributes to Meat Loaf and AC/DC on August 15.

Advance tickets for the concerts, which run from 7.30pm to 10pm, cost £14.50 for adults or £12.50 concessions. These rise to £17.50 and £15.50 on the day.

Prices just for are £8.15 for children aged 5-15 and £9.70 for adults.

For more information about everything to see and do, visit www.trentham.co.uk

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68098 - 2023-01-26 01:27:43

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