After four years of restoration, National Trust-owned Chastleton House's ‘Best Garden’ is now back to its original Jacobean format featuring a central sun dial.

Prior to the restoration, the garden’s flower beds had been turfed over, and only contained a circular hedge and cloud topiary.

Now, thanks to the restoration team, two new circular hedges have been added, along with bedding circles, topiary and a narrow path to walk alongside it all.

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Chastleton was owned by the same family for nearly 400 years.

In the early days of the 17th century, the family became impoverished, and due to them being unable to update the house, the house remained a ‘Jacobean time capsule’.

This means that the garden has kept its original layout.

Oxford Mail: Line marking taking place as the gardens are restored at Chastleton House

The garden is arranged in a cross shape around the house, with games lawns, public rooms in the house and a calm space in the South Court.

As the National Trust acquired Chastleton in 1991, a conservation garden plan was drawn up, which was not to fully restore it, but to ‘retain and preserve its faded and romantic air of decline’.

Oxford Mail: An aerial shot of the gardens in April 2022An aerial shot of the gardens in April 2022 (Image: Rosy Sutton/National Trust)

The restoration team broke ground in 2019 but were delayed in their progress by Covid.

Head gardener Rosy Sutton said that “before the restoration, visitors would scuttle across the turf to the exit, but now, people stay for ages.”

Oxford Mail: Turf lifting in the gardens

She added: "We’re really excited for the Best Garden this year, it’s going to look so good. We’ve already noticed a real difference in how people use the space.

"Before the restoration, visitors would scuttle across the turf taking the shortest route to the exit.

"Now, people stay for ages, walking the full loops of the paths and admiring the clouds of butterflies on the buddleia."