A PROJECT to replace the former garden within the walls of Barnard Castle with an orchard and wildflower meadow has been completed.
It was felt by English Heritage that the orchard would be more suited to the 12th century castle than the previous sensory garden.
English Heritage gardeners from from Mount Grace Priory, as well as a dedicated team of volunteers, created the traditional orchard, replete with local fruit varieties, including 13 different types of apple.
These include the green balsam, a North Yorkshire breed from the early 19th century, and the ancient ‘Ashmead’s Kernel’ from the early 1700s.
The orchard includes standard trees so that visitors can wander beneath the boughs along mown paths through a wildflower meadow. It will offer seasonal showings of spring flowers and autumn fruit. The existing space was a former allotment and the remnant fruit trees have been retained. The “leaping fish’s bench” has been retained as a focal point within the new scheme.
Although in its infancy, with many of the trees still needing to reach maturity and the wildflowers yet to bloom, the new garden has been welcomed by people who have been through it.
Dave and Phyl Sneddon visited last week and were impressed with the layout.
Mrs Sneddon said: “I can see the prospects for the future. It is an extra touch for visitors to enjoy as well.”
Robin Copeland, senior landscapes advisor for English Heritage, said: “This orchard will better integrate into its setting, offer strong seasonal interest of spring flowers and autumn fruit and provide opportunities for community engagement and activities. We are thrilled with the results of this volunteer led project and would like to thank them for their hard work and dedication.”
The castle is open daily from 10am to 6pm.
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
