Events & lectures
Our planned events for 2024 ... please note costs to be confirmed and may be subject to change
Contact Jenny Burt (01933 353076) for more information
Elton Hall
Monday 29 July 2024 at 10.30 a.m
Elton Hall is sited on the Northamptonshire/Huntingdonshire border and has been the home of the Proby family since 1660, although previous generations held land at Elton during the reign of Elizabeth I. It is surrounded by 200 acres of open parkland and 26 acres of gardens.
Sir Thomas Proby built a fine Restoration house between 1665-1668, which incorporated the medieval chapel and gatehouse of the original Manor House and successive generations have embellished the house and its furnishings, the collections of paintings and volumes for the magnificent library. The gardens include formal lawns, herbaceous borders, an orangery, flower garden, water features, shrub garden, arboretum, wilderness garden, box & yew hedges and magnificent topiary. The present gardens (2021 winner of the Historic Houses Garden of the year award) have been rejuvenated and restored over the last 40 years whilst in the tenure of Sir William Proby and his wife Merry who have now passed the Hall to their daughter Alexandra and her family.
We shall have a private visit to the Hall and its lovely gardens.
Cost
Members £17 | Guests £19
Parking and lunch
Park at Bosworth Garden Centre, Elton PE8 6SH.
The Mulberry café at the Garden Centre is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please book lunch, if required, directly with the Café. Tel: 01832 343104. Indicate you are with the Gardens Trust to reserve the seating area.
Another facility for lunch in Elton is The Black Horse Tel:01832 280591.
Note The Crown Inn has no food on Mondays.
Clare Cottage, Helpston
Friday 9 August 2024 at 11 a.m.
Join us as David Bond leads us in the footsteps of John Clare the Northamptonshire peasant poet who was born at Helpston in 1793.
John Clare (1793-1864) was born in this cottage in Helpston and was raised by his parents as an agricultural labourer. He was educated at small local schools and developed a great love of poetry aged c.11 when his father read the poems from a book given him by his uncle, a drover. He had several labouring jobs, including working as a gardener at Burleigh House, marrying his wife Martha, (known as Patty) in 1820, and raised a family in the cottage at Helpston. His own poetry illustrates the landscapes in which he worked and explored, he observed and recorded the minutest detail at a time when enclosures were transforming the landscape. His poetic work was prolific, and despite the difficulties of publishing. gained much admiration. Yet sadly he became mentally ill, suffering from delusions and eventually was committed to Northampton General Asylum in 1841 where he died in1864.
After lunch we shall drive to Castor Hanglands to walk in the woods and heaths which so inspired Clare’s poetry.
Where to meet
Clare Cottage, 12 Woodgate, Helpston, Peterborough PE6 7ED at 11 a.m.
Cost
Members £10, guests £12 including coffee/tea and biscuits on arrival. Please advise us of any dietary requirements.
Lunch
The café can provide lunches (purchased individually) but need to know what food is required beforehand. The Bluebell pub also does lunches. Tel: 01733 252394.
Our Summer Party
Thursday 5 September at Boughton House
Make a note in your diary - details coming soon
Islamic Gardens lecture with David Bond
Thursday 14 November 7.30pm
Great Houghton Village Hall
Join us as we hear David talk about this tradition of gardening. Growing out of an older garden tradition in Persia, it has had a considerable influence in Europe ─ the Alhambra being just one example. We have some examples in the UK and, with an increase in multiculturalism, interest has grown with some modern gardens attracting much attention for their beauty and atmosphere.
Members free | Guests £2
December ─ our Christmas Gathering
Great Houghton Village Hall
A chance to get together, enjoy some food and wine, and listen to a speaker who will conclude our lectures and events for 2024!
Do come along to one of our events – see what you have been missing …
Our visit to Coton Manor gardens
Friday 4 September
We were delighted to invite members to enjoy the much acclaimed Coton Manor gardens. The Nation's Favourite Garden as voted by garden visitors in conjunction with The English Garden magazine and the National Garden Scheme.
Please use these links if you cannot see the images below (your web browser may need updating)
“Through the series of lectures and visits I learned a great deal more about the man (Lancelot Capability Brown) and his ideals and in turn this gave me a greater understanding and appreciation of the history behind what we take for granted, as the ‘English’ landscape." Gwen