Willow Holt

Hidden away in the Cambridgeshire countryside is Willow Holt, a two-acre garden which surprises and delights its visitors.
Rolling woodland, watery hollows and a wildflower meadow make up this garden of wonders, where meandering paths lead past quirky sculptures.
Owned by Angie and Jonathan Jones, and open for the National Garden Scheme (NGS), the garden is flooded with character from its majestic trees right down to its delightfully misshapen stone steps.
Its creation was a real labour of love, but it was also a real challenge. When the couple first moved to the house 16 years ago, the whole area was overrun with giant nettles, elder and blackthorn.
However, they soon discovered this was the least of their problems. Lurking beneath the weeds were heaps of plastic, glass, metal and bricks. A previous owner wanted to remove the irregular dips in the garden and had asked neighbours to dump their rubbish there to help fill in the hollows.

Grown from scratch
Even today digging can turn up more rubbish – a square metre area can bring at least half a barrow load of rubble to the surface. Despite the overwhelming task of having to sort through piles of rubbish, Angie still managed to find plenty of promise in the garden.
“Snowdrops were the start for me,” she explains. “A clump appeared near some bricks and it made me start to imagine what the garden could be like.”
A large proportion of the garden was grown from scratch, starting with some of the hedging surrounding it – Angie describes herself as an “obsessive seed grower”. She loves it when plants self-seed everywhere.
“With some sedum you can just pick the seeds and put them in the ground,” she explains. “I say don’t mess with nature, it is designed
to survive!”

A sculpture garden
After meticulously digging out the rubble, everything was recycled that could be – over the years rockeries were created and bricks reused. The cedar shingles from the house now form the roof of an unusual hut in the garden.
The sculptures, all of which were made by Jonathan from discarded rubbish, are one of the magical elements. With age, the statues vanish into the garden: some get wrapped in clematis or disappear into the undergrowth until you happen upon them.
One of the most impressive creations is the sculpture of a spider on a web, made from wire and plumbing pieces, held aloft above a large water feature. The fountain usually only spurts out water in the winter, when there has been a lot of rain in a short space of time.
However, because of the flooding in 2007, the fountain worked in
the height of summer that year! The spider is highly detailed
and decorated with a colourful, mosaic patterning.

Ivy-covered crocodile
Another piece, loved by children in particular, is the ivy-covered crocodile carved out of a fallen tree, with a carefully sculpted tongue and teeth. It holds a wooden hand in its mouth, which gets rearranged whenever visitors go past! There are also some metal bugs in the undergrowth, inspired by one their son created as a school project  – Jonathan decided to make some extra ones to keep it company. They are made out of old chicken hut wheels and their faces have shower nozzle noses!

New use for old willow
Angie and Jonathan have the perfect partnership – he does all the building and sculpture work, while she does “dirt and plants.”
Their philosophy is that you can usually turn things to your advantage, and in this way end up wasting nothing.
A perfect example of this is the magnificent willow tree at the centre of the garden which died a few years ago. Rather than removing it completely, the couple decided to turn it into a sculpted hand reaching to the sky, complete with carved nails and fingertips.
Now more light can reach this area of the garden, making it possible to grow a wider variety of plants.

Attracting wildlife
The lack of formality makes this an intriguing garden to visit  – there are no straight lines or edges; instead winding paths lead you to hidden areas, which make the garden feel much bigger than it really is.
One of the first areas you come to is the wildflower meadow, which has been left largely unmown in order to attract wildlife. In the summer this attractive area is brimming with insect life, buzzing with bees and humming with the sound of dragonfly wings.
 
Pondlife
The garden is a wildlife haven, with occasional inhabitants that include foxes, rabbits, Muntjac deer and hares. One year there were even fox cubs hiding in the woodpile. Of course not all of the wildlife is always welcome – the rabbits dig up the plants indiscriminately and then leave them discarded, which is very frustrating!
In the ponds there are great crested newts, water voles and great diving beetle larvae and the grandchildren have great fun pond-dipping to find them.
The garden has a range of different habitats, which means some areas are tougher to grow in than others. Horse manure and compost is dug in to enrich the soil, but because the garden is so large this is a never-ending job.

Magical style
You wouldn’t be able to guess at any of the struggles in the creation of this peaceful and secluded garden. You can sit on the hand-carved wooden seats and listen to the rustling leaves or stroll along the twisting woodland walks. In the dappled sunlight, delicate flowers add colour to the greenery. There are powdery white puffs of hydrangea, day lilies, echinops, pink cosmos and honeysuckle.
You can see why it is loved by so many visitors. It has a magical, style that is captivating, from the water-filled dells to the twisted lamp post on the driveway. Willow Holt is a garden where you can feel at peace.

Visiting

 Willow Holt, Willow Hall Lane, Thorney PE6 0QN
 Tel. 01733 222367
 Open NGS open days can be found at www.ngs.org.uk
 Visitors are also welcome by appointment.