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Whether you take the high road or the low, you’ll find the glorious gardens at Camstradden House add to the appeal of the banks of Loch Lomond
The glorious gardens of Camstradden House on Loch Lomond
‘Inherited by Sir Malcolm, chief of Clan Colquhoun, Camstradden sits on the site of an ancient family castle’
When landscape garden designer James Hutchison first saw Camstradden, Sir Malcolm and Lady Colquhoun’s garden on Loch Lomondside, he was struck by the beauty of the setting. The lawn in front of the house sloped gently down towards the loch shore with views over the islands of Inchconnachan and Inchtavannach. Argyll hills rose up behind, while a belt of mature trees anchored the house to the land.
Inherited in 2008 by Sir Malcolm, chief of Clan Colquhoun, Camstradden sits on the site of an ancient family castle. The current Georgian house was built in the mid-18th century and the couple began renovating the garden in conjunction with the house.
For James, this was the perfect blank canvas. Although there was a garden south of the house it remained to be developed. ‘There was very little apart from some gravel paths, a chicken coop and some box hedging,’ he says.
There were other challenges: the high annual rainfall, which James attributes to the house’s position below the hills west of Luss, means the site was permanently waterlogged. ‘The garden sloped down towards the loch and as a result the site was prone to flooding. Sorting out the drainage was a high priority.’
The brief Sir Malcolm gave was clear. ‘My brief was to create a substantial fruit and vegetable garden with cut flower borders,’ James says. Vegetables, he continues, are gener-
‘A belt of mature trees anchored the house to the land’
ally best grown in lines and the site lent itself perfectly to a rectangular, linear design.
The resulting scheme draws on the traditional principles of classical design using a light touch that brings a fresh, contemporary feel to the garden. Flowing from the elegant lines of the house, the design is based on a central axis that runs through the planting and takes as its focal point a Celtic sundial.
The site was divided in two levels with vegetables and flowers on the top and lawns leading to the loch below. A network of drains topped by a ‘foot of gravel and aggregate’ was installed to solve the drainage problems, while a contemporary note was introduced by the stone retaining wall topped with a beech hedge and punctuated with a line of slender juniperus.
Top quality materials such as Yorkstone paving was used for the hard landscaping, which contrasts with gravel paths edged with stone setts. The vegetable beds were also framed in Yorkstone, a solution which allows them to be tended in all weather without compacting the grass. Elsewhere, riven sandstone paving brings additional form, texture and colour to the scheme.
For James, plant selection is a key part of any design and, as the son of renowned plant collector Sir Peter Hutchison, he brings a depth of knowledge to all his work. At Camstradden, choosing plants that could withstand the rain,
‘Choosing plants that could withstand the rain was key’
even with improved drainage, was key. The central knot garden, which encloses the Celtic cross is a case in point.
Traditional in design, here the twist is in the planting: loose, wavy Celtic design combines maroon berberis and box edging set against a bed of gravel. The space is further enclosed by a box-edged herbaceous bed with height coming from a curved beech hedge behind.
Structural beech hedges are used throughout the garden, cleverly dividing the space into different areas that open up in a series of surprises. The hedges also act as internal windbreaks creating additional microclimates.
In late autumn, the perimeter beds are bright with scarlet crocosmia, orange lilies,
white phlox and a second crop of alchemilla mollis set against the maroon foliage of cotinus with lower plantings of hostas.
Height in this one-acre space comes from the south-facing greenhouse where seedlings are grown. James explains that it was Lady Colquhoun’s idea to add beds of cut flowers for use in the house on either side of the greenhouse.
Planned for a long season, the beds are rich with crimson dahlias, chrysanthemums and companion plants, such as deep orange marigolds (calendula officinalis). Sweet peas grow on a bamboo support and in spring there are lots of purple allium.
A recent introduction is the striking treehouse built by craftsman James O’Keefe from oak, larch, cedar and Lawson cypress wood, which is grown and milled on the estate. This will be followed by a replica of Monet’s bridge at Giverney, complete with weeping willows and water lilies.
Plans are afoot for James Hutchison to develop the garden to the north of the house on the site of an old rose garden. Sir Malcolm explains: ‘Longer term, I plan to develop woodland walks north of the house, which is a major project that is dependent on sorting out the drainage of the area.’
Watching the garden develop is an exciting prospect. ‘The main garden is going from strength to strength and is becoming a little more mature every year,’ Sir Malcolm explains. ‘It is fascinating seeing what works in our climate, and what doesn’t. It is very beautiful, and it’s at the centre of our lives – when the weather is not quite as awful as it was last summer!’