July has a midsummer feel whatever the weather. Newly mown paths lead through thick meadows of flowers, grasses, thistles full of bees and butterflies. Borders (protected from rabbits) say ‘look at me’.
Welcome to our wild woodland and wetland garden. We are open to visitors for most of the year.
You arrive by a lane winding through trees and from winter to autumn the colours are constantly changing. The oldest beech and oak have been here for a long time, marking boundaries of a former Victorian estate. But we have added new plantations of birch, ash, oak, maples and Scots pine since we first arrived in 1993.
Now woodland paths lead through the seasons: February snowdrops; March and April daffodils, primroses, anemones; May bluebells and wild garlic.
June brings foxgloves and ferns and a real froth of cow parsley. This year the foxgloves are a mix of pink, peach and white – self-sown, they seem to have an uncanny sense of where they will look their best.
July has a midsummer feel whatever the weather. Newly mown paths lead through thick meadows of flowers and grasses, thistles full of bees and butterflies. Borders (protected from rabbits) are saying ‘look at me!’
The climate is changing and we’re learning to adapt. We plant for a mix of flowers, fruits, seeds and nuts to support birds, bats, bees, butterflies, moths, red squirrels – and tiny unknowns.
The pond is big. Probably first created for duck shooting more than 100 years ago, it is now home to mallards, moorhens and (usually) a family of swans. We also see kingfishers and herons. Log piles and dead hedges wander around different areas of the garden offering food and shelter for birds, voles and red squirrels
There’s a lot of green. Mosses soften log piles, cover stone walls, tree stumps and a stumpery. We let grasses grow but mow paths through a wild flower meadow.
This year we’re working on new Himalayan planting beside the waterbank, and a small rock garden.
We are delighted to be part of Scotland’s Gardens Scheme with donations supporting CHAS (Children’s Hospices Across Scotland).
Directions from Milnathort village. At the mini roundabout in the centre of the village take the north exit (signed for Path of Condie) up Wester Loan, then North Street. At the top of the hill, past the church on your left, you will cross the motorway again. Carry straight on for ½ mile, the gate to Pond Cottage is on the right after a field opening. Entry is £5.50. Children free.
