About
Though elements of the garden (including the rock garden) were initially laid out in the 1930s, the majority of the garden has taken shape since the 1950s when much of the initial planting was done by Pery Fairfax when he came to Mindrum.
Since their marriage in the 1960s much of the subsequent planting and design has been done by Ginny Fairfax who has created a network of gardens, borders and walks and continues to evolve and build the garden from year to year.
Ginny acknowledges that much of the design has been informed by "the art of the possible" - ~(what will and what will not grow in the Cheviot Foothills!) however, as one moves through the garden this is not necessarily apparent as the gardens have been carefully crafted to merge sympathetic "northern planting" with some surprisingly exotic effects. The important thing is that nothing feels out of place.
The Woodland walk follows the original island formed by the old Mill Race, enhanced in 1932 to support an early hydro electric scheme. The foundations are still in place, now merging into the trees. Originally planted with sycamores in the late 1950s, successive thinning and plantings have resulted in a cool woodland, carpeted with wild rocket and surrounded by waterfalls and pools.