Work on a stunning new rose garden at Lowther Castle, designed by Dan Pearson, is now under way.
Many and varied are the layers of design in the gardens at Lowther Castle. And today, this week, this month, this winter another layer – designed by the Chelsea gold-medal winning Dan Pearson – is taking shape in the form of a new rose garden.
The gardens at Lowther Castle date back to the 17th century. Since their initial creation, they have enjoyed a history of boom and bust and for the second half of the 20th century, they lay abandoned. Today both castle and gardens are enjoying a renaissance and Lowther Castle is rapidly becoming one of the Lake District’s most popular visitor attractions.
Dan Pearson’s visionary rose garden is being planted in the shape of a rose bloom. Briar roses will form this shape with kissing gates allowing access into a beautifully planted ornamental rose collection. The rose garden has been designed with a poem by William Morris in mind, the poem based on the myth of Sleeping Beauty. More than 2000 roses from David Austin will go into the final planting while a central water feature will mimic the stamens of a rose.
Martin Ogle (pictured above), head gardener for the Lowther Castle Estate, said:
“We are delighted to have begun implementing Dan Pearson’s designs for our rose garden. Although innovative and contemporary, the rose garden will still be in keeping with the layers of memory from Lowther’s past. We will continue to share updates as we progress.”
Lowther’s new rose garden will open in June 2018.