THE main visitor season at Dumfries House might be over - but the head of the estate's gardening team says she and her colleagues are just gearing up for the busiest time of the year.
Melissa Simpson and her 12-strong team of skilled gardeners are kept busy throughout what many people might think would be a time of some rest for gardeners.
Gathering fallen leaves to make mulch to fertilise the plants and pruning the roses in Dumfries House's rose garden of 3,000 plants at the head of the Queen Elizabeth II Walled Garden are among the tasks tackled by the team.
Melissa, who moved to Dumfries House in January 2020 from a previous post in Helensburgh, said: "It would take two of our gardeners a week to prune, tidy up and mulch the 3,302 roses in our rose garden at the head of the Queen Elizabeth II Walled Garden, and a further week to tend to the climbers and shrub roses throughout the rest of the walled garden.
“We begin collecting leaves in mid-October and the last leaves drop in around mid-December, and our team of 12 tackles that task on and off throughout that period.
"We blow the leaves into the woodland areas - not including the woodland gardens - or make mulch out of it.”
The estate grounds are open 365 days a year, with the Queen Elizabeth II Walled Garden open at the gardeners' discretion depending on the weather.
The house itself is open on Saturdays and Sundays through the winter.
Do you have any handy gardening tips for during the winter months?
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