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Wightwick Manor – An Arts & Crafts House and Garden

For lovers of the Arts and Crafts movement, Wightwick Manor is an absolute delight, for not only is there a garden by Thomas Mawson but the added enjoyment of a house which has outstanding examples of the work of William Morris. The house is now in the care of the National Trust and was built for Theodore Mander in the late 1880s. Mander was a Wolverhampton paint manufacturer who employed Edward Ould, a Liverpool architect, and specialist in timber framing, to build the distinctive house.

There is an outstanding collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, wallpapers and fabrics by Morris, tiles by William De Morgan and metalwork by W.A.S.Benson.

Garden Background:

In 1899 Alfred Parsons was engaged to advise on the garden at Wightwick although little is known of his influence at that time. By 1904 Thomas Mawson had submitted plans for alterations and improvements to the garden, so despite the house being a late Victorian design, the garden is very much a 20th century one, being Edwardian in layout.

The Garden:

It is thought that the formal garden and the Long Walk were Parson’s proposals but Mawson is credited with the creation of terraces on the south front and with raising the lawn level with the house. Mawson believed that the garden should always complement the house and achieved this with the use of terracing, walls, balustrades and clipped yew hedges.

Wisteria growing up the south front gives the house a comfortable country feel and while formality surrounds the immediate environment of the house itself, the further away you go the less formal the garden becomes. There are pools, a Willow Grove, The Orchard and an unusual and colourful Yew and Holly Walk. During the 1930s gardens were created below the terrace known as the Poets’ gardens. Some of Mawson’s work was lost over the following decades but in 1991 the box trees were replanted by the N.T., and flowerbeds reinstated to the original Mawson designs.

Inspiration:

An enthusiastic staff and volunteers led by Robin Clarke, Head Gardener, look after Wightwick’s garden and ensure that each season brings its own colourful reward. There are plenty of ideas for Yew topiary and the use of Holly and for those with larger gardens, plenty of inspiration for the woodland garden.

How to get there:

The garden is open between March and December, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday 11 – 6pm. Telephone 01902 761400 for details. By car the house is 3 miles West of Wolverhampton, off the A454 (beside the Mermaid Inn). The nearest railway station is Wolverhampton 3 miles away.

© Reckless Gardener Magazine 2005 Mill Cottage New Media