|
The Formal Garden is one of the spring features of Anglesey Abbey; it is filled in the spring with blue and white Hyacinths 'Blue Star' and 'Carnegie' planted in December to flower at the beginning of the summer season.
The Formal Garden is arranged within the confines of a Yew hedge that forms an irregular hexagon, accentuating the strong geometric lines of the beds.
The site used to be a tennis court, one of the first areas developed by 1st Lord Fairhaven with his brother Henry.
After Henry left, the use was changed to that of a garden, its design has been altered over the years, a broad border used to run around the outside and the original Thuja hedge replaced by the current Yew.
The varieties of Hyacinth were arrived at through trial and error; the original planting of 'Bismarck' and 'Innocence' had to be changed when heat treatment techniques were introduced for bulb storage.
These affected the flowering times sufficiently enough to prevent them flowering together, and new varieties were trialled until the ideal combination was arrived at.
The Hyacinths are planted in regimented rows, each one a set distance from the next, planted to a line stretched taut over the soil.
The bulbs are planted about 15cms deep in December to flower in the last week of March and into April.
Flowering lasts approximately nineteen days after which time the spent flowers are removed and the plants left to grow until the end of May.
The bulbs are then lifted and stored until autumn when they are sold to the public at the shop in the visitor centre.
Once the bulbs are removed, the beds are prepared for the next show; dwarf bronze leaved Dahlias in two colours, red - Madam Stappers, and yellow - Ella Britton.
These stay until claimed by the frosts of autumn and the process starts over again.
The gardening team spends many hours removing spent flowers to ensure a continuous display throughout the summer months.
David Jordan - © National Trust
The wrought iron gate at the entrance to the garden was designed by Martina Dombrowsky of the West Surrey College of Art and Design and sponsored by the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers.
It was erected in 1990 and the York stone paving added to prevent wear to the lawns.
| 
