Welcome To Dutton Hall

As we prepare for our annual Garden Open Day- on Saturday 8th September- unfortunately it will not be possible to admit private tours of the garden throughout the rest of August. This will mean the garden can be presented to all our visitors in good form next month.

We very much hope that anyone wishing to plan a visit to Dutton will be able to come and see us on the 8th September.  Please find further information relating to the Open Day below…

The garden will be open to the public on Saturday 8th September from 1pm until 5pm.  If you would like to see a different aspect to the gardens then this is your chance- put the date in your diary…

As Autumn closes in our late flowering rose varieties have a chance to shine in the late summer sun.  Come and see the Autumn foliage and hips, the formal front garden in the fine setting of a sixteenth century house, and the orangery full of interesting and unusual plants more suited to warmer climes.

Refreshments, cakes, scones and sticky treats will be available to purchase in the house.  Entry costs only £4, all of which will go to the charity Plant Heritage.  Members of Plant Heritage and children can come in for free.

If you can’t make our open day why not book in for a private tour with the owner, details of which can be found below…

It was a great pleasure to welcome Carol Klein and the team from Gardeners World here to film some material for an episode which is due to be aired on Friday 3rd August.  They arrived with all their equipment, bright and early, to film in brilliant sunshine all day!  Now what were the chances of that?

Remarkably the roses, though battered by the savage prevailing westerly wind in recent weeks, were still showing plenty of colour for the cameras.  All being well the garden will look good on the television but do tune in on the 3rd August and have a look for yourself…

The Garden is out in full bloom (despite the torrents of rain recently!) so why not come and see for yourself.  This year we are not having an open garden weekend during the summer, instead we are running several private events.  However that does not mean that you can’t view the stunning vista of Lancashire’s Premier Collection of Old Fashioned Roses in full bloom…

Just Email (info@duttonhall.com) or telephone (01254 878254) to book a private view- on your own, with your family, or in a small group- and we would be happy to welcome you to Dutton Hall.  As long as you book in advance you can wander through and enjoy the gardens for free.  Hour-long guided tours with the owner and garden designer, Catherine Penny, can be organised at a cost of £30.

Many of the roses you will see can be bought from the Orangery Door.  Catherine Penny can help you to choose the roses to suit you and your garden.  All roses are sold at a cost of £10.

Please don’t miss out- see the gardens in full flower and book your visit today.

This being our peak season, we have been exceptionally busy over the summer.  The highlight was, of course, our art exhibition ‘Are you Afraid of Beauty?’  The Surrey-based Pavillion Artists ventured north to pack the walls of our Music Room with their exceptional work.  Each of the four members of the group has their own unique style, and use different mediums to skillfully create appealing work that aims to please rather than challenge its viewers.

Peter Searight has exhibited at Dutton before.  An award winning photographer, Peter once again showed his atmospheric English and Australian landscapes to an appreciative Lancastrian audience.  He has also taken a number of photographs of the Dutton Hall gardens which have been turned into attractive greetings cards and are available to buy at all of our open days.

Also making the trip north with Peter was Jan Hite, a ceramicist whose quirky and colourful sculptures were not the only thing to excite our visitors over the last weekend in June.  Equally popular were her expertly crafted clay owls, and a shimmering bowl of ceramic fruit that was snaffled up by one eager purchaser before the exhibition had officially opened!

Unfortunately neither of the other artists could travel with their work but that didn’t prevent it from proving hugely popular.  Claire Harrison’s depictions of nature suited the setting of Dutton Hall, with its garden in full flower, perfectly.  While prize-winning artist, Anne Bowen’s refined compositions were remarked upon for their superb quality.

We were delighted that so many people were able to attend the exhibition, and explore the gardens here over the weekend.  It meant that we raised significant sums for a series of charities, including the Red Cross.  We are also extremely grateful to the small number of volunteers from Bushell House in Goosnargh and St Johns Church in Hurst Green who baked cakes and served teas to all of our visitors.

Our famous Old Fashioned Roses are always at their absolute best in the last week in June, and this year was no exception.  While the Front Garden is teeming with flower throughout the summer months, you can only truly appreciate the much newer Rose Garden- created within the last decade- in those precious days of late June and early July.  The garden is heavy with pinks, yellows and whites; the landscape is an inescapable wall of colour.  For those of us who witness the garden in all seasons this is a very special time and we would not dream of missing it.  If you love old fashioned roses too, please don’t allow yourself to miss out- get in touch about booking a group guided tour next year.

After a warm, dry and wind free-April, May is wreaking its revenge. We have had a couple of days of heavy rain and the gale force winds are in danger of damaging many of the large shrub roses and particularly the giant ramblers. We are hoping that our new rose walk will stand the strain. We are delighted to have had a splendid display from our Rosa banksia lutea.