Valleys high

When Fran Toulson bought her house, overlooking the Waskerley river in picturesque Wolsingham, one of her main considerations was the garden. Then just a scrappy piece of land, with an unkempt lawn and conifers obscuring the lovely view, Warrenfell was hardly noteworthy. But with her keen gardener’s eye, Fran saw its potential. She received the keys to the property, built by the Water Board in 1880, on February 10, 2012 – and the very next day, got to work.

“I pulled the conifers out," she says. "I come from a farming background so I drove my twin cab in and attached a tow rope. I did try to dig them out but I thought, ‘this is too much like hard work’.”

Looking at the garden today, it’s hard to imagine it as anything less than pristine. Individual beds comprising all kinds of flowers are intersected by an elegant pergola and arbour with a sundial as its centrepiece, while fruit trees espaliered on the kitchen garden fence tumble down the hillside. To the right is a rock garden where alpines nestle among the stones and further up, the greenhouse Fran uses to propagate plants.

Overall, the impression is of neatness and order – of nature showcased to maximum effect. With the only constraints being practicality and Fran’s taste, there is, paradoxically, a randomness about the garden which sees roses and peonies growing alongside shrubs and rare wild flowers, yet, somehow, it works.

After drafting an initial plan, Fran reviewed the progress of the quarter-acre plot in 2014, tweaking things where necessary. The aim has always been to provide year-round colour and interest. “Basically, I wanted a mixture,” says Fran, a retired civil servant. “Last year I had colour 12 months of the year somewhere in the garden.”

Though she describes herself as “very much an amateur”, Fran has always loved gardening and traces this back to watching both sets of grandparents cultivate different types of gardens. Having lived for many years on the family farm in Lincolnshire, her work took her all over the UK and abroad before she came to County Durham. Fran knew Wolsingham from visiting friends in the area and fell in love with it.

“I’ve been coming here for many, many years because I have working gun dogs and I love the area,” she says. “I’m not a built-up area person – never have been. I’d often seen the signs for this little valley and it’s beautiful. It reminds me of lower Teesdale.”

Having completed the planting, last year, for the first time, Fran held an open day through the National Gardens Scheme. Visitors were able to stroll around admiring both the garden and its stunning view of woodlands stretching up to Tunstall Reservoir. As a result, a gardening club contacted Fran to request a visit and she has also been asked to give a talk by a flower club. Next weekend, hers will again be one of the gardens open to the public nationally. “I’m propagating plants to sell on the open day and I’ve got Hartside Nursery, one of the country’s top alpine nurseries, coming to do a plant stand,” she says.

One thing visitors might appreciate is being able to trace Warrenfell’s progress from its inception to the present. From the day she acquired it, Fran has photographed and documented every stage and has amassed two ring binders’ worth of information. They serve both as fascinating keepsakes and reference tools. “Because some of the plants are quite unusual, it’s nice when people ask about them but also, by writing down if it’s got any particular care needs or how to propagate it, I remember it,” says Fran.

Keen to break up the garden, she installed the pergola and arbour to create natural walls of fan-trained cherries, climbing roses and clematis when the plants are mature. Meticulous as ever, Fran sourced the structure from Harrod Horticultural and had it made to her specifications. “I’ve put arches and structures up before but they’ve tended to be in wood and that’s fine, except it does tend to rot,” she says. “That’s why I chose steel.”

Something else she has learned from experience has been to make the garden as low-maintenance as possible. She once had two acres surrounded by hedges and says they needed twice-yearly attention, so was keen to avoid this kind of hassle. “I don’t like things that you’ve got to dig up or plant every year,” says Fran. “I like perennials and shrubs.”

Now that the garden is complete, she only has to maintain it, with the amount of time she spends varying depending on the time of year. Crucial to Fran is enjoyment – and she plans to enjoy her garden fully. “I’ve sat out in December on a sunny day,” she says. “Now that I’ve retired, I’m not going anywhere.”

Warrenfell is open as part of the National Gardens Scheme on Saturday, July 2 and Sunday, July 3, from 10.30am-4pm, admission £3, children free, www.ngs.org.uk