Curtain up at last on Barnsley’s restoration drama

Common house plant the Begonia rex may not inspire thoughts of adventures across the high seas by wild explorers.
Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.
Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.

Yet it is likely that whoever discovered the once rare and sought after plant in Asia more than 200 years ago would have endured their fair share of challenges in bringing the specimen back to England.

The distinctive plant is among hundreds of species from across five continents which have been planted in a restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle near Barnsley, in South Yorkshire.

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Officially launched yesterday by the Mayor of Barnsley, Coun Ken Richardson, the £3.74m project is the culmination of a 10-year fund-raising campaign which began after the Grade II* listed glasshouse was featured on the BBC programme Restoration in 2003.

Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.
Director Claire Herring inside the restored Victorian conservatory at Wentworth Castle Gardens.

Once in a sorry state the glasshouse, which was built by Crompton and Fawkes in 1876, fell into disrepair over the years and was placed on English Heritage’s Risk Register.

But having been painstakingly restored to its former glory the architectural treasure is once again home to an impressive list of plants from across the globe.

The interior planting is based around the continents of the world, with five beds explaining the history of how different plant species – some of which are now commonplace in British gardens – first arrived in this country.

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“Because the earls who owned the estate over generations were avid plant collectors they collected plants from all over the world,” said Dr Michael Klemperer, estate manager for Wentworth Castle. “We have a representation of the sort of stuff that was in the conservatory originally and a representation of the sort of stuff that was in their gardens.

“We have a number of beds in the new conservatory that are a snapshot of Australia, Asia, Europe, The Americas and Africa – each in a separate bed.”

The estate has been collecting plants for almost two years and planting was finally completed yesterday with a Brugmansia from The Americas.

“The trouble with most of these plants was that until something called the Wardian Case was invented they all died in transit,” said Dr Klemperer.

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The little self contained glasshouse offered a closed environment to plants in transit protecting them from the lethal salty atmosphere of the sea voyage.

It was not just the plants facing the perilous risks of an expedition.

“Being a plant collector was a hazardous thing,” said Dr Klemperer. “They were attacked by natives and affected by tropical diseases. Plant collectors have always taken risks, they still do. There was a man kidnapped recently looking for orchids in Peru. He was held captive for six months and eventually released. It is still risky.”

The Earl of Strafford, the estate’s original owner, hired plant collectors and adventurers and would also have been offered interesting plants by nurseries.

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Some of the plants in the collection are originals but the temperature is cooler in the conservatory than it was originally, now accommodating a range of temperate rather than tropical plants.

“It is incredibly special,” said Dr Klemperer. “It’s a one-off. You walk down through a series of gardens and past a number of monuments to what is not a pile of scrap any more but a beautiful conservatory.”

Since the derelict conservatory was carefully dismantled last year, the original iron frame consisting of 4,000 parts, has been cleaned and re-cast where necessary. Some 35 layers of paints were removed to reveal intricate detail and thousands of tiny triangular tiles have been cleaned and re-cast to recreate highly decorative Victorian encaustic floors.

Wentworth Castle Gardens are run by Wentworth Castle and Stainborough Park Heritage Trust. For the past 10 years the trust has gradually been restoring the gardens, parkland, follies and monuments.