01/01/2012 - Funding to restore historic boundaries
A £40k grant from Natural England will be used to repair and rebuild the arboretum's ha-has and railings.
The historic ha-ha boundaries and railings of Westonbirt Arboretum will be brought back to life thanks to a Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) grant from Natural England.
Whilst Westonbirt is known world-wide for its national collections and autumn colour, much less is known about the important role these boundaries play in the Victorian picturesque design of the landscape.
Thousands of metres of walls and railings sit discreetly across the Grade I registered Downs and border the tree collections.
The railings, distinctive to Westonbirt in design, together with the Cotswold stone ha-ha walls are now almost unrecognisable in some areas. Over the years, many of these boundaries have disappeared altogether or have been replaced with modern fencing.
Their original use was to keep livestock out of the native and exotic tree collections, but they now also act as vehicle boundaries and help to guide visitors around the arboretum.
The Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreement, in partnership with the arboretum’s farming tenants, will improve the environmental benefits of the estate. The restored boundaries will allow cattle to graze on some areas, whilst keeping them out of other locations so species including some of the unusual and rare wildflowers can flourish.
Sophie Nash, Westonbirt Project Support Officer, commented:
“Westonbirt’s railings are an example of great craftsmanship and engineering and reflect the arboretum’s Victorian creator Robert Holford’s love for landscape design and innovation.
“Some of our railings are so distinctive in design and construction that they have baffled many craftsmen I’ve approached during the planning for this project.”
The work is part of the Westonbirt Project, led by the Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum. The project is a long-term plan to restore and reinstate elements of the important landscape and develop Westonbirt for the future. As part of the plans, a new car park will be built to remove cars from Grade I registered Downs landscape.
The HLS grant will enable Westonbirt to start work on 700 metres of railings, encompassing five different styles of design. The work will be completed over the next few years.
Find out more about the Westonbirt Project.
