Selly Manor: garden

The Garden

Photo showing the parterre, made up of low hedges of herbs to make a symmetrical pattern.

The garden has been recreated as a Tudor garden that might have served these manor houses. We have a kitchen garden of raised beds to grow vegetables and herbs, and a variety of fruit trees. You can visit the woodland section which represents the forest that would have dominated this area. We also have a turf seat, typical Tudor garden furniture. Our most recent work has been to develop a parterre, similar to a knot garden, with symmetrical beds and low herb hedging.

. Photo showing a view of the kitchen garden with raised beds for the vegetables.

Many of the plants seen at Selly Manor would have been commonly used during the medieval period and later. Herbs like rosemary and fennel were used to flavour bland and rotten food. Lavender was hung up and scattered on the floor of houses to improve the smell. Some plants have medicinal qualities, and others for bathing and cosmetics.

Photo of the fruit trees in the garden of Selly Manor.