We are OPEN

Carols by Candlelight in Hestercombe House

‘Choristers from Wellington School Chapel Choir entertained a packed audience to a magical evening of Carols By Candlelight in Hestercombe House on Saturday.’ The event took place in the grand Victorian hallway of the House, with the choir positioned on the impressive staircase which was festooned with festive garlands. The picture shows 4 of the choristers: Alice Loneragan, Thea Phillips, Flora Johnson and Darcy Anderson (top to bottom.) This was part of the enchanting winter programme running at Hestercombe, slots are still available for skating on the Hestercbome skating rink, but Father Christmas is already fully booked!! Picture Credit: Alain Lockyer

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038

Preparing for winter

Over the last couple of weeks the weather has been wet and wild! The gardens and car park especially have suffered from flooding and water damage meaning that all the gardeners have been busy cleaning up! In the Formal Gardens we have been lifting the cannas from the Great Plat. We have two types, the Canna musifolia are the tall ones on the outside beds with banana like leaves and the smaller ones are Canna indica. In the spring we plunged the cannas into the beds whilst still in their pots, making it much easier to lift them out. The leaves of the cannas are cut back and we store them in the greenhouse over winter. We have been chopping back the Bergenia x schmidtii that edge the Plat borders to stop them spreading too far into the beds. We simply take a spade and chop the plants back to the desired size. This is quite a big job so it was great to have the help of all our volunteers! Also this week we have finished chopping back the Mexican daisies in the walls and have given the orange trees in the Orangery a wash! The oranges were starting to show signs of sooty mould, so we wiped all the leaves with a cloth soaked in warm soapy water to stop the spread. Plants that will be looking good in the gardens over the next few weeks include the Skimmia japonica and Skimmia japonica 'Rubella'. The red Skimmia berries provide a bright splash of colour amongst the glossy evergreen foliage. The Magnolia stellata in the Shrubbery is coming into bud, a little earlier than usual!

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038

Hestercombe Hits the Headlines!

First paper to pick up the skating story - The Western Daily Press. Have a look at their lovely photo here: WesternDailyPress And guess who's dressed as an elf?! "The new Face of Somerset, Megan Bessell, with Father Christmas, elves Helen Barsby and Emily McCoy, enjoy the Hestercombe Christmas Skating Rink near Taunton last night, where they were skating with children from Trull School." Skating is open every weekend then every day from December 17th. Father Christmas is also about, Saturday 15th until Sunday 23rd, but slots are selling fast! Don't miss out, call 01823 413923 TODAY!

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038

Press Launch for Skating - Fri 30th Nov!!

The Face of Somerset Skates into Christmas at Magical Hestercombe! Friday 30th November, 4.30pm – Hestercombe’s Official Skating rink Launch! Do join us for the exclusive opening of Hestercombe’s Skating Rink with ribbon cutting on skates performed by the new Face of Somerset, Megan Bessell. Press are invited to preview the super silky all-weather artificial ice-rink for themselves! The rink, opens to the public on Saturday 1st December. Last year’s skating at Hestercombe proved so popular it is back again this year. Accompanying Megan on the ice will be children from King’s Hall school and some of Wellington School’s Chapel Choir, festively dressed for the occasion. Heavenly angels may materialise alongside Father Christmas and his elves. The ice-rink will be open for public skating every weekend in December as well as every day between 17th December and 6th January. (Please book skating session in advance). Set inside a magical marquee with traditional festive fare and mystic Christmas creatures, the whole family can enjoy the festive fun indoors whilst leaving the cold winter weather outside. Why not book in for a party? The food at Hestercombe is tantalisingly top-notch and the Hestercombe chef’s have prepared a taste-tingling Christmas menu available throughout December. We look forward to seeing you on Friday 30th November at 4.30pm!

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038

New gardening blog!

With autumn in full swing now we are certainly finding plenty to do in the gardens! Apart from the seemingly never ending task of leaf blowing and raking we have been chopping back all the Mexican daisies that grow in the walls. This reveals the beautiful stone work underneath and shows off the intricate structure of the Formal Garden. We also have some new additions to the garden for the winter - three sheep can be found on the old tennis court by the orchard! Nicknamed Tallulah, Edna and Penelope by the gardeners, these sheep are here to graze the long grass that has grown up over the summer. The winter bedding plants on the Victorian Terrace that were planted at the end of October are settling in and starting to flower. Also look out for the stunning Euonymus alatus with its dark pink foliage in the Shrubbery. This is a great small shrub for autumn colour. Don't forget that it is the Christmas Market this weekend! A beautiful 15 foot Nordman Fir Christmas tree has been put up in the courtyard. Look out for the Hestercombe stand in the marquee where you can buy products such as wooden chopping boards made by the gardeners from Hestercombe's own oak and sweet chestnut.

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038

Christmas is a Coming!

The shop is all dressed up for the festive period already, with sparkling fairy lights and handmade traditional decorations to adorn Mark's mini Christmas trees. And if you wanted a little bit more festive cheer come to the Christmas Market - packed full with great gift ideas - on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th November. There will be over 50 enticing stalls inside the giant marquee on the marquee lawn, each one carefully picked for maximum visitor enjoyment! From 'Sequins and Sword' fun children's toys and dressing up outfits, 'Forever - Aloe Vera's' all natural beauty and health products and of course plenty of scrumptios festive food - taste the handmade fudge, the xmas puds drenched in brandy or one of Hestercombe's own hot mince-pies!Make sure this one's in your diary. £3.00 on the door or £2.50 online. See you there!

Hestercombe Gardens aerial Pawel Borowski DJI 0038
Page 39 of 43
Hestercombe aerial image 6483441

What's On

2024 dates for your calendar