HIGHNAM COURT AND THE PULHAM LEGACY

Highnam Heritage members enjoyed another visit to Highnam Court on their annual invitation to bring picnics and explore the gardens, courtesy of owner, Roger Head. We enjoyed perfect weather, dry and warm with a mild breeze. Roger had promised to tell the members about an important part of the gardens so we gathered in the Orangery to hear about Victorian garden landscapers, namely Master Craftsmen James Pulham.and Son. During the Victorian Era, many new ideas were being developed and one has had a major impact on the gardens of Highnam Court.

Due to the heavy weight of transporting natural stone and a need for landscaping in large estates, the Pulhams invented an ingenious method of construction of mountainous, rugged scenes or grottos. They created a recipe of rock-like cement, which would be coated over piles of rubble and brick centre cores, looking to all intents and purposes like sandstone or limestone in texture and colour. Not only could they create wonderful scenes of natural beauty in this way, they also crafted beautiful urns and statues, all deceptively stone-like.

When Thomas Gambier Parry purchased Highnam Court in 1838, he set about creating a magnificent set of gardens and a few years later, commissioned James Pulham II to design something very special.

Roger led our members around the gardens to show us where the Pulham legacy is at its best. In 1849 an extensive water garden was created. This incorporates a network of ponds, streams and niches. Planted within these are wonderful ferns and a host of species of plants which thrive in this environment. Some of the large boulders are especially interesting, deliberately left unrepaired, to expose the brick foundation as an visible example for those studying Pulham methods. The Owl Cave grotto is another beautiful feature, looking exactly as if it has been formed by stone within a rocky outcrop. The Walled Garden Terrace is yet another example of Pulhams’ ability to create extraordinarily attractive features in the landscape of Highnam Court.

The work was so successful throughout the country they were awarded A Royal Warrant and subsequent installations at Buckingham Palace and Sandringham House. As a testament to their enduring quality the work can still be viewed in Highnam Court gardens today and is the oldest example of their work still in existence. We are extremely privileged to have this example in our locality and credit must go to Roger Head for his devotion to maintaining these gardens to the highest of standards for everyone to enjoy. No doubt Thomas Gambier Parry and the Pulhams would be delighted – as were we and the many others who visit these wonderful gardens.

Susanna Stewart