£230k grant will help Cresswell walled garden to bloom again

The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded a grant of £230,000 to go towards the cost of the scheme in the Cresswell area.

Two centuries ago, produce from the garden fed the family, as well as their servants and workers, who lived and worked in an elegant mansion on the edge of the coastal village.

Coupled with other smaller donations, getting the grant means that works on the ground for this project should start later this year.

It will complete ambitious plans to create a combined new visitor attraction in the village, as the walled garden sits alongside a 14th Century Pele Tower that has been rescued from its near-derelict state at a cost of more than £800,000 – again with the support of The National Lottery.

“This is great news and it means two neighbouring historic links to Cresswell’s past are being preserved for future generations to visit and enjoy,” said David Lodge, project manager for the Cresswell Pele Tower Charitable Incorporated Organisation.

This body was jointly established by Cresswell Parish Council and Greater Morpeth Development Trust to progress both schemes.

The kitchen garden linked the Pele Tower to the grand Cresswell Hall that was built in the early 1820s.

The hall stood within 200 acres of landscaped parklands, lawns and formal gardens alongside the kitchen garden, which was walled on three sides so that fruit, vegetables and flowers were protected from the cold North Sea winds as they grew.

It was the home of the Baker-Cresswell family for 100 years until 1924 when, along with the remainder of the estate, it was sold to Northumberland County Council.

The plan was to convert it into a hospital, but that never materialised and the elegant building was eventually demolished more than 80 years ago. The kitchen garden has not been used since.

Since the idea of restoring the garden was first mooted, scores of volunteers have been hard at work removing tonnes of rubbish and rubble, as well as clearing and replanting its herbaceous borders with an array of colourful flowers, shrubs and bushes.

Now that funding has been secured, landscape contractors will be appointed to put down new pathways, rebuild greenhouses, cold frames and raised beds, where flowers and vegetables can be grown, install electricity and running water, create a pond and build an events pavilion.

Dozens of fruit trees will be planted to recreate a Victorian orchard, including unusual varieties such as walnut and almond growing alongside favourites such as apples and pears.

It is also planned to have a number of bee hives on the site and already around a dozen volunteers are training to be beekeepers.

All the work is expected to be done in time to re-open the garden in around 18 months’ time.

Then it will be open to the public at the same time as the Pele Tower, which has become a popular visitor attraction since it was opened to the public last year.

Mr Lodge said: “Together the Pele Tower and the walled garden are going to be a fantastic legacy for both local residents and visitors to enjoy for generations to come.”