WHAT'S Been Happening (Or Going To Happen) At Finlaystone Estate

December was a very busy month with record Christmas tree sales, ‘Santa’s Grotto’ and weekend craft stalls. Santa’s Grotto was so popular this year that we had, unfortunately, to turn some families away as Santa could not keep up with the demand to see him. You can read of one family’s visit here (Babyworld.co.uk)

The recent storms have been horrendous with more than 400 trees being blown down or having their trunks snapped by the force of the wind. Most paths are now open but some of the play equipment, especially the Pirate Ship, received direct hits and will need much repair. However, it is still a great time to put your boots on, gain some exercise and discover the secrets of the estate which is open all year round. Head ranger David Finnis said: “Whilst walking around the woodlands and gardens look to see what you can discover as we have many common woodland birds around. Keep an eye out whilst walking near the burn for dipper and grey wagtail whilst mallard, little grebe, tufted duck, heron and moorhen are regularly seen on the pond. Best of all, take yourself off down into the Paradise area and see snowdrifts of snowdrops. During February our snowdrops will be at their very best. Each Sunday we will have rangers leading guided snowdrop strolls but on the evening of Saturday 18 February we will have a special ‘Lantern-Lit Snowdrop Trail’ event. Throughout the ‘Snowdrop Festival’ we will have an exciting self-led trail which will take visitors into the ‘Paradise’ area of the estate where the snowdrops will be spectacular set against the backdrop of the two large waterfalls.’

Our Gardener Willie says: “We are pleased to report there was little damage in the gardens during the January storms when we had winds in excess of 100mph. Only a few trees were damaged, unlike the woodland areas where many trees were uprooted or blown over, and some damge was sustained by the Polytunnel. Compared to recent years, the winter up to now has been extremely mild, with very little snow or frost and this has allowed us to carry out tasks that normally would be ‘on hold’ till later in the year.

“In the kitchen garden we will be planting more summer and autumn fruiting raspberries and autumn fruiters should now be pruned to approximately two inches from the ground. It is now time to start forcing rhubarb and this can be done by covering the plant with a special pot to exclude daylight (an old dustbin lid will do the same job!) as this forces young shoots to form which are tender, pink and very sweet. Sweet pea seeds, broad beans and leeks can be sown indoors.

“Plants of interest this month include Cornus alba ‘Sibrica’ (red stemmed dogwood), Sarcoccoca confusa (Christmas Box) with its tiny white flowers and delicious scent and Hammamelis (Witch hazel) can be found in the winter border. The yellow winter Jasmine Jasmininium nudiflorum can be seen growing on the trellis around the fountain. Hopefully, February will pass without too much adverse weather and we can look forward to some serious gardening as light levels improve and temperatures increase.”

The grounds are open daily between 10am and 5pm, the visitor centre andshop are open between 11am and 4pm and the tearoom is open weekends only between 12 and 4pm till the end of March.

If anyone else suffered tree damage in the latest storms and is looking for new trees, we have a fine selection of decorative ornamental garden and landscaping trees available that will provide spring, summer and autumn colours as well as giving privacy in a garden. If interested email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or check the website.

Forthcoming Events:

Sunday 29 January, 1to 4pm -- Big Garden Bird Watch -- Join in with nationally important ‘Big Garden Bird Watch’ to count birds in the garden.

Every Sunday in February, 2pm -- Snowdrop Strolls with a ranger – One-hour ranger-led walk to explore the beautiful, white carpet of snowdrops in the woodlands. Snowdrop posies and potted bulbs for sale in February. Snowdrop bulbs ‘in the green’ available in March.

Wild Days Out

Fun-filled activities with the rangers from 2pm aimed at children up to 10 years old, who must be accompanied by an adult.

Monday 13 February -- Mask Making (Additional charge of £1.50 to cover materials used.)
Tuesday 14 February -- Ranger Hike
Wednesday 15 February -- Lantern making for the ‘Lantern lit Snowdrop Trail’ (Additional charge of £1.50 to cover materials used.)

Saturday 18 February, 7pm -- Lantern Lit Snowdrop Trail – ticket only -- Bring your laterns and join the lantern and candle lit trail to see the snowdrops in starlight. Port Glasgow High Drama group will help entertain and a hot drink is included in ticket price. Tickets £7 adults, £5 children.

Commemorative Schemes -- Have you ever wanted to commemorate a special family occasion or do something to remember someone who has passed away? If so, we have two opportunities which might be of interest. The first would be to provide a commemorative bench for the walled garden and the second would be to plant a commemorative tree. Contact at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or check out the website for further information.

Facebook And Twitter -- Our ‘Facebook’ and ‘Twitter’ pages are building up quite a number of people who either ‘like us’ or ‘follow us’. If you would like to join them, please ‘follow us’ at www.twitter.com/finlaystonepark or ‘like us’ on – www.facebook.com/finlaystone where you can also keep up with what’s happening.

Greats of Great Britain -- We are now listed as one of the ‘Greats of Great Britain’ on the web site www.thegreatexhibition2012.co.uk/greats and would be pleased if you could vote for us as it is a ‘great’ way of raising our profile and promoting the estate.

Friends or relatives planning to visit and nowhere to stay! -- Why not try our newly completed holiday flats? Full details can be found on their own website www.finlaystonecottages.co.uk. The ground floor glazed area is available for meetings, children’s parties etc and details are available from Norah on 01475 540505 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it