‘IT WAS OVERWHELMINGLY BEAUTIFUL’

0
328

Lady Jane Gamester, a descendent of the Annesley family, was delighted to see the renowned Arboretum in Castlewellan Forest Park

 

A DIRECT descendent of the Annesley family made her first ever visit to the Castlewellan Arboretum and Annesley Garden at the weekend and, after seeing it in all its glory, has said she is eager to promote the garden as much as she can.

Lady Jane Gamester (formerly Annesley) is 76, from Surrey, and is descended from the Annesley family who built Castlewellan Castle in the 19th century and developed the Arboretum.

She arrived in Ireland on Thursday, and visited the Arboretum on Saturday, which also happened to be her birthday.

Jane said of her first ever visit to the garden: “It was overwhelmingly beautiful”.

This is Lady Jane’s first trip to Ireland. She was encouraged by her uncle, the 12th Earl Annesley, to travel to see the gardens.

The current Earl, her uncle, is in his 90s but is a keen fan of the area.

“The present Earl Michael, said ‘Haven’t you ever been?’ He said, ‘You must go’.”

But it took the motivation from other family members to make the trip happen.

Bright native Patrick McIlmail, who has worked with the Gamesters in England, was keen for Lady Jane and her husband to see the area.

Lady Jane said: “Our daughter Colette, chatting to Patrick, cooked it up to get me here.

“She coerced my husband to come.

“I am really pleased to be here to promote the place if it helps.”

She and her husband Vernon Gamester were given a guided tour of the area by Patrick McIlmail, who took them to see the Mourne Mountains, Tollymore,  Down County Museum and the cathedral in Downpatrick.

But it was the trip to the Arboretum at Castlewellan which was the most important stop.

Lady Jane has a deep love of nature and is fond of visiting trees near where she lives in Surrey.

“I love all trees and the ancient ones are my greatest love.”

With that in mind, she was delighted to find that the collection of trees in Castlewellan is particularly renowned.

The Arboretum and Annesley Garden was originally 10 hectares when the Annesleys started planting trees there in the 1750s.

It now spreads across 45 hectares and includes some of the finest specimens.

Lady Jane said of the Arboretum: “They have the champion trees, which I call the venerable trees.

“It is a garden that is truly loved.”

On her visit there she met retired forester and head gardener Sam Harrison, and head gardener Alwyn Sinnamon.

Lady Jane said: “What is lovely, and that I am thrilled about, is that Sam and Alwyn are people who are passionate about the garden. They love the garden and they don’t want to leave it.

“You can feel that they care.

“You could feel that Sam will always be part of the garden.”

Lady Jane said the experience of visiting the gardens impressed upon her the importance of protecting and nurturing their existence.

“You have to keep alive the beautiful gardens. It is lovely that the castle and grounds can be used. It is nice that people have access.”

She said she is keen to continue to support the garden.

“We must promote the garden more, we have to keep it going.

“It should be celebrated and financially supported.

“Children should come and learn about the importance of the garden and the trees. They have the fun of the lake and they can stay in the castle.

“If I could be a facilitator that would be important. Finance is key. Things are getting tighter for these projects.”

Lady Jane is the eldest daughter of the 10th Earl Annesley.

Her grandfather Robert was the ninth Earl, her uncle Philip was the 11th Earl and Michael Annesley is the current 12th Earl.

Castlewellan Castle was built by the fourth Earl Annesley, William Richard Annesley. On his death the house and land passed to his brother Hugh, who made a great effort to develop the Garden and Arboretum, which has developed into a world-renowned resource.

Sam Harrison has been involved with the Castlewellan Garden and Arboretum since 1969. He was head gardener up until 2000.

He said meeting Lady Jane Gamester, and finding out her connection to the family, was very special.

“She was so friendly and so taken by this place,” Sam said.

“She really appreciated what had been done here.”

Sam and Alwyn took Lady Jane and her husband on a tour of the grounds and explained to them about the collection.

“Over the course of her time here, she found out that we had a book about the place and I think it made her very emotional to look at the book.”

Sam said that he gave her his book about the history of the grounds, one of only 300 made.

“She is going back home with it. I have no need for it.”

During the trip Lady Jane and her husband stayed at Hillyard House in Castlewellan, which provided them with great access to the Castlewellan Arboretum and Annesley Garden.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here