Discover The Curve at Berrington

Project
A birds eye view of the new design layout of the walled garden

Berrington Hall is a set piece of 'Capability' Brown design and his final landscape masterpiece. Recent research into the walled garden and pleasure grounds has revealed the rarity and significance of this part of the grounds.

A particularly significant part of the garden is the curved walled garden built in 1783 to Brown’s original design. We've discovered that it's the only one of its kind to survive the centuries and that it may have been used for growing exotic fruits like pineapples in forcing pits. The curved garden was used as a home for livestock by the tenant farmer for the last 100 years, but came back into the care of the National Trust in May 2019. 

Since then, we've been able to carry out urgent conservation work in the curved garden during 2021 thanks to the DCMS Culture Recovery Fund. This has involved removing the old farm buildings and lean-tos which were causing damage to the original walls and carrying out urgent repairs to the walls themselves. Read the updates below to find out more. 

This is a visual of how the garden could look if the project is successful
A wide shot of Berrington walled garden with the new style and layout
This is a visual of how the garden could look if the project is successful

We have been combining findings from reports such as the 2017 Wessex Archaeology report with other findings, such as the James Crummer papers from the Hergest Croft Archive. All of this information is giving us an idea of how 'Capability' Brown intended Berrington to look.

This project update is designed to keep you informed and up to date with the latest developments, progress and occasional discoveries associated with this project.

The top of 'Look! Look! Look!' with some bullrushes in the corner Play Video

Latest updates

09 Jun 21

Historic orchard is replanted

The team have been hard at work planting trees in the parkland, with the help of students from Westfield School in Leominster. The saplings have been planted on the site of the original orchard, which ‘Capability’ Brown included as part of his design of Berrington over 240 years ago.

17 Mar 21

Restoration work continues after national pandemic

The national pandemic meant the project was paused for the rest of 2020 but the team were thrilled to pick up from where the project was left this March 2021. Working closely with archaeologists to avoid any unnecessary damage, contractors have sensitively removed the final remaining structure, known as the Dutch Barn, thought to date from around 1928, from within the centre of the curved section. With the final structure sensitively removed this now leaves he garden a blank canvas for us to revive and reimagine over the coming years, as we create a twenty-first century vision for an eighteenth-century garden.

Machinery inside the garden aid the removal of the Dutch Barn

16 Nov 20

Repair work and conservation of curved garden walls

From 16 November until mid-March 2021, we're beginning urgent repair work and conservation of the curved garden walls. This work will be taking place inside the curved garden itself, but you will be able to see some of the brick work repairs in action. This urgent conservation work will preserve the original eighteenth century bricks and conserve this historically significant garden for the local community and future generations. The wider garden project is on pause for now, but this vital element of the conservation work has been made possible by the DCMS Culture Recovery Fund. We're very grateful to DCMS for supporting this project and allowing us to save 'Capability' Brown's final curved walled garden and the only one of its kind to survive the centuries intact.

Georgian red bricks within the curved section
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