The historic Greater Manchester house and gardens named one the UK's best
29.02.2024 - 06:59
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
We're just weeks away from the beginning of spring, hopefully a time when the grey skies give way to blue and the flowers will begin to bloom. Across Greater Manchester, there's a number of beautiful gardens, woodlands and parks to watch as the buds of daffodils, bluebells and tulips burst into action.
One of those is Dunham Massey, and it's just been been namechecked in The Guardian's new list of the best locations to visit in early spring. It was named alongside 11 other UK destinations, which also includes castles in North Yorkshire, sunken fern gardens in the Highlands and a wildlife reserve in Norfolk.
With its historic house and 300-acre deer park, Dunham Massey is one of the most loved National Trust sites in the North West. And while it boasts one of the largest winter gardens, come spring, it transforms thanks to some very clever planting.
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From now until late spring, visitors can experience the winter garden colours at Dunham Massey at their most vibrant. Seasonal favourites including snowdrops, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips, which all sit against the backdrop of the Georgian house and Orangery.
Last year, the National Trust gardeners planted over 40,000 extra spring bulbs, of which around 4,000 were daffodils. It took volunteers and staff around 1,400 hours to plant the new bulbs and create the displays of daffodils and early spring flowers, with work starting in September and continuing until the beginning of December.
The planting has taken place across the garden in areas of varied light, from more open meadowed areas to spaces with dappled light. Among the thousands of new bulbs, you’ll find daffodil varieties including ‘January