Wooland Walks
Wooland Walks
The Christie Walk
Ella Christie travelled around the globe, stopping in many countries along the way. In addition to Japan, Ella visited America, India, Tibet, Malaysia, China and Korea.
This walk contains plants from a number of these stops representing her travels. Some notable plants to be seen in the Christie Walk are Darmera Peltata (also known as Indian rhubarb) from North America, Meconopsis ‘Lingholm’ from the Himalayas, Cercidiphyllum Japonica from Japan (which notably has leaves which turn red and smell sweet like candy floss in the autumn) and Camellia Sinensis from China, the leaves of which are used to make tea.
The Lime Tree Avenue
The Lime Tree Avenue sits to the south of the Japanese Garden and was the original entrance used by Ella Christie between the Japanese Garden and Cowden Castle (which has now sadly been demolished).
Most notably, this walk was used by H.M. Queen Mary when she visited in 1937. The avenue provides a beautiful and atmospheric walk between the woodland and the garden.
The Stewart Woodland
This woodland walk used to extend down to Cowden Castle, but now exists as a scenic walk east of the garden which has been filled with activities for children and families.
The woodland walk is now accessible to wheelchair users, as we have replaced the bridge, which previously had some steps, with a wheelchair-friendly alternative. However, please note that some of the paths are still slightly uneven and the walk features some hilly slopes so please do not hesitate to speak to a member of staff if you are unsure or want any further information.
Storm Arwen
In November 2021, storm Arwen wreaked havoc here at Cowden Garden. Luckily, the traditional garden was untouched but The Stewart Woodland lost close to 100 trees in one night.
Over that winter our gardeners and contractors worked tirelessly to make this area safe. It is now fully open once more and has the new addition of a miniature Woodland Village made from some of the stumps of fallen trees.