‘One of the most beautiful gardens in Scotland, Glenwhan Gardens is a must-see for all who love gardens and horticulture’. Laura Jones visits the breathtaking gardens and arboretum at Dunragit, and shares the incredible story of how a gamble, vision, and years of hard graft have created this nationally recognised site
Glenwhan Gardens and Arboretum, near Glenluce have been designated a garden and landscape of national significance by Historic Environment Scotland. The assessment is unequivocal in its appreciation: "One of the most beautiful gardens in Scotland, situated at 300 feet, overlooking Luce Bay and the Mull of Galloway, with clear views to the Isle of Man, Glenwhan is a must-see for all who love gardens and horticulture.”
This is a huge achievement and is down to the foresight and hard graft of one person, Tessa Knott Sinclair. As you sit in her garden and Tessa tells the garden’s story, you become aware of the foundations on which this place was made: passion, determination, and a willingness to take risks.
Tessa was introduced to Galloway as a young woman by her husband Bill, who loved this area. In the 1970s, they were farming in Herefordshire with their two small children, but Bill was restless. Sight unseen, they bought a 103-acre upland farm, part of the Dunragit Estate in 1971.
"We only heard about it two days before bids closed. There just wasn’t time to get up here and look, so we took a gamble," says Tessa.
Their first sight of Glenwhan reassured them that the gamble would pay off, but not without a big investment of time and effort.
"There was a derelict old cottage in the middle of the farm. I went inside and climbed up a rickety ladder into the loft and looked out, across the sweep of Luce Bay; I was smitten. I knew I wanted to make a garden here but wasn’t sure how."
Other people didn’t know either, even experts. This was an exposed, rocky site at 300 feet with thin acid soil that excelled at growing gorse and bracken. Ancient glaciation had scoured the surface, leaving a legacy of humps and hollows. It seemed as unprepossessing for a would-be gardener as anywhere in Britain.
Tessa had no horticultural training but had vision. Before the gardening could start, a shelter belt and deer fence were priorities.
Although Glenwhan is exposed, this is usually to mild, moisture-laden westerly winds and the warming effects of the Gulf Stream. West Coast gardens grow acid-lovers well, so they planted 100 hardy rhododendron hybrids as well as trees, especially conifers and birches, inside the shelter belt.
Shelter begets shelter and a microclimate was developing, enhanced by the creation of two lochans.
The more Tessa learned and experimented, the more she leaned towards trialling plants from the Southern Hemisphere, such as Chile, New Zealand, and Tasmania, which are adapted to similar conditions. Some of these introductions grumbled, some died and most thrived.
Tessa and Bill joined the International Dendrology Society: “Bill loved trees and was delighted when his choices did well."
Forty years later, the result is a woodland haven, where nothing bigger than a hawthorn had previously grown.
Scarlet-flowered Embothriums (Chilean Firebush) and delicate, white-flowered Drimys from South America rub shoulders with Northern Hemisphere magnolias, cornus and sorbus species, including Sorbus arranensis, a rare, naturally occurring hybrid from Arran.
Conifers from both hemispheres show off their true beauty when allowed grow as single specimens. Bill especially liked hollies and the glossy leaves and ‘berries’ of his Ilex collection brighten winter days.
Today, the Tree Walk is a window on the world of trees with a staggering 130 beauties to admire.
With their children, Richard and Louise, growing up, Tessa and Bill could travel abroad to see plants in their wild settings. This was a revelation.
Returning to Glenwhan, Tessa was determined to emulate these environments, realising that they were rapidly disappearing.
She was a sponge for horticultural knowledge and plant -lovers were generous with theirs.
In turn, she wanted to share with others and opened the gardens to the public.
Soon Glenhwan was attracting attention and praise and had its first visit from BBC’s Beechgrove Garden. Garden societies, rhododendron and tree lovers put Glenwhan on their must-see list.
Families were taking children to explore the maze of paths and locals brought their visitors to be impressed by another wonderful Wigtownshire garden, so different but complementary to Logan and Castle Kennedy.
Glenwhan also celebrates our native plants with the moorland walk over 17 acres. A list is available of the 120 species of wildflower that have been identified here.
Where there is biodiversity there are animals, and Glenwhan is home to a large variety of birds, invertebrates, and amphibians. The gardens are open year-round.
In spring, there is an explosion of colour, from the delicate streamside candelabra primulas to exuberant rhododendrons and azaleas, both species and hybrids.
Colour continues through summer with herbaceous planting and is carried on by the hydrangeas, as a prelude to deciduous autumnal glory. As the seasons swing round, the first snowdrops reappear.
Life has changed for Tessa, too. Her children moved south for work. Then Bill died in 2018. He is buried in the gardens.
Ian Sinclair was a plant-loving friend of theirs who came from a different background, having trained and worked at Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh. They met through the Scottish Rhododendron Society. and in 2021, Tessa and Ian were married at Glenwhan, cheered on by family and friends.
Ian has brought new eyes and rigour to the gardens. He spotted areas that needed rejuvenation and has been upgrading labels and providing identification where that had been lost. The Tree Walk is a recent joint inspiration.
They are a close team, working with gardeners, James and Marion, and tearoom staff.
It is easy to spend hours at Glenwhan and a reviving pot of tea and cake is very welcome! Then there is time to browse the sale tables, with plants propagated in their nursery.
As Tessa finishes her story, you realise Glenwhan is a story of people and plants working together.
It’s a story that includes all the friends and fellow gardeners who have provided advice, plants, and propagation material.
There are the people who worked side by side with Tessa, from Frank Little and Willie Patterson at the start, to today’s team. There are her children and her two life partners.
At the centre is an indomitable woman, now in her 80s, who had a vision and lives at the heart of a remarkable garden.
* Glenwhan is open 10am-5pm all year round. The tearoom is open from Easter to October 1.
www.glenwhangardens.co.uk
