Bodnant, near Conway on the north coast of Wales, is one of the world’s great gardens. Even in Great Britain, there is nothing to compare with it.
A series of broad terraces, with a vast panoramic view across the Conway River to the lofty mountains of the Snowdon Range, makes a dramatic setting for a unique collection of plants.
The extensive woodland garden, which covers many acres, contains one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of rhododendrons.
There are vast numbers of old conifers, flowering trees, and shrubs of considerable rarity.
Lord Aberconway Of Massachusetts Horticultural Society
No discussion of Bodnant is possible without a few words about its creator, the late Lord Aberconway.
An esteemed figure in the horticultural world on both sides of the Atlantic, he served as President of the Royal Horticultural Society from 1931 until he died in 1953.
In 1949, he was awarded the George Robert White Medal of Honor by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.
His moral and financial support for plant collectors was well known. Likewise, his interest in hybridizing rhododendrons, clivias, white cypripediums, hippeastrum, and other plants was widely recognized.
Bodnant: Expanding Garden
In 1949 Lord Aberconway conveyed Bodnant with a large endowment to the National Trust.
By agreement, he retained control of the gardens, a privilege now held by his eldest son, who is also a keen horticulturist.
The result is that Bodnant is still an expanding garden, beautifully maintained and much loved.
Public World-Famous Garden
Yet by becoming the property of the Trust, this world-famous garden is now open to the public on regular days each week, and its preservation is assured.
Each of the great terraces at Bodnant has been treated completely differently.
On the top terrace is a large reflecting pool of unusual shapes with waterlilies and giant spreading blue cedars, which frame the view of the distant mountains.
On the canal terrace below are hardy borders almost completely devoted to blue and purple flowers.
Thus a symphony of blue so characteristic of the Welsh landscape prevails.
Wisteria Venusta
The carefully designed rose walls and pergolas enclose gardens with climbers and wall shrubs, including a superb Wisteria venusta, covered with long racemes of white, fragrant flowers each June.
Osmanthus Delavayi
Another remarkable specimen is the giant Osmanthus delavayi, with its glistening evergreen foliage and scented flowers.
Pinus Radiata
At the far end of the canal terrace is an outdoor stage with wings formed by carefully clipped yew hedges and flanked by cypresses with a backdrop of Pinus radiata.
A classic white bench and two marble statues of Hermes complete the composition.
The Pin Mill
At the other end of the canal is an unusual garden house built about 1730 in Gloucestershire.
Some hundred years later, it became part of a factory and was called “The Pin Mill,” a name it still bears in its new home, to which it was moved just before the last war and restored to its original use.
Magnolias in Bodnant
On a terrace below are some of the many magnolias for which Bodnant is famous. It now boasts the largest collection of Asiatic magnolias in the country.
These include the spectacular, to name a few:
- Magnolia campbelli
- Magnolia sargentiana robusta
- Magnolia mollicomata
- Magnolia kobus
- Magnolia dawsoniana
These and many others make an unrivaled display in April and May. So interested was Lord Aberconway in this genus that is planted several acres with them.
Camellias in Bodnant Garden
Camellias have received a great deal of attention in this garden, and there are impressive plantings both of species and japonica hybrids.
Camellia reticulata, with its great semi-double cherry-colored flowers, does exceptionally well.
A few years ago, a set of the new and very rare Camellia reticulata varieties were obtained from California.
Most favored of all are the hybrids of Camellia saluenensis and Camellia japonica. These have grown into large shrubs and are extremely frost resistant.
The Pin Mill
Approached by a path behind “The Pin Mill” is a great glen through which flows a rocky stream with a series of pools, crags, and waterfalls.
Along it are paths that wind in and out through tall conifers, some of which are among the most outstanding in Great Britain.
Plantations Of Rhododendrons
On the fern-covered slopes on either side are plantations of rhododendrons, thousands of them cleverly grouped in subtle harmonies of color.
These include the best Chinese and Himalayan species and hybrids, many of which originated at Bodnant.
In the spring of the year, the dazzling color of these shrubs under a canopy of silvery beech leaves, with the rich deep tones of the evergreens, makes it an unforgettable sight.
Paths are bordered with rare primroses and glades completely planted with blue Himalayan poppies, for both primroses and meconopsis thrive in the rich, moist woodland.
All Kinds Of Gardens
In other parts of Bodnant are all kinds of gardens within gardens. Broad sweeping lawns and shrub borders abound.
For the lover of alpines, there is a rock garden of dwarf rhododendrons, nomocharis, daphnes, lewisias, and other delightful plants.
Then there is a long arbor of laburnums, and in May, it is thrilling to look down a tunnel completely hung with pendulous racemes of pale gold.
This planting, like many others, is on a generous scale not seen in many other gardens.
Long Bed Of Gentiana
For instance, there is the long bed of Gentiana acaulis and great patches of its Chinese relative, Gentiana sino-ornata.
These are only some of the delights at Bodnant, a superb achievement in gardening art.
Conceived on lines that we are not apt to see repeated in an age of high labor costs and tax hurdens, it is still maintained in the highest possible state of preservation.
44659 by Lanning Roper