Replanting of the Hayrick Border
One of the best loved areas of the Parks is the herbaceous border – the Hayrick Border – that runs northwards from the South Lodge entrance. For decades this has given pleasure to visitors to the Parks.
However, the absence of maintenance during the Covid lockdown has taken its toll, and Parks staff have struggled for the past four years to get some invasive weeds under control and to regain the horticultural variety that was there before. We have concluded that it is time to replant this border completely.
We have lifted and potted up any particularly valuable plants in the border and, where possible, we are replanting viable plants elsewhere in the Parks. From Monday 19th January, we will be stripping out the rest of the herbaceous planting, keeping the trees and shrubs. This provides us with an opportunity to bring in large quantities of organic matter to improve the soil before replanting.
The majority of the border will be replanted immediately. However, there are two areas which are riddled with bindweed and we plan to lay an impermeable mulch over these for up to 12 months, so that we can identify and remove as much as possible of the infestation before re-soiling and replanting in spring 2027.
We hope that, once complete, the border alone will become a great reason to visit the Parks at almost any time of the year.
