Strathpeffer Spa Gardens get planting makeover

Work begins this week on planting works in the historic Victorian Spa Gardens in Strathpeffer, as part of the Highland Council’s Planning and Development Service capital programme of environmental improvements.

The total cost for the works, which will include three years maintenance from the planting contractor to ensure that the plants are well established, is £40,000.

Councillor Drew Hendry Chairman of The Highland Council’s Planning, Environment and Development Committee said: “The re-establishment of the Victorian Spa Gardens will greatly enhance the visual amenity of Strathpeffer which to this day still depends greatly on its reputation as a visitor destination. The Council’s programme of administration supports works which further develop and support tourism in the Highlands.”

Set at the heart of Strathpeffer, the gardens form the setting for the Strathpeffer Pavilion, the upper pump room and St Anne’s Church. The gardens were first laid out in the mid 1800’s as Strathpeffer’s popularity as a Spa resort grew, and gentle exercise was prescribed along with water from the famous sulphurous springs as part of the curative regime.

After their heyday, the gardens deteriorated over time, but have more recently benefited from drainage and path works carried out by The Highland Council and from the renovation and re-opening of the Pump Room and the Pavilion.

The current project has been developed by Landscape Consultants, Horner and Maclennan on the Council’s behalf and in consultation with the local Garden Group, whose volunteers undertake valuable upkeep work within the gardens.

Where previous projects have focused on the infrastructure of the garden, these works will see new beds of shrubs, bulbs and herbaceous plants being provided to draw the visitor in and enhancing the gardens’ picturesque qualities with year round colour and seasonal variety.

As in the original nineteenth century designs for the gardens, the new planting will highlight path junctions and features such as the existing bridges and pond. There will also be some clearance and pruning back of existing shrubs.

During the works the public are advised that access may be restricted from time to time.

For further information please contact: Anne Cowling, Landscape Officer, The Highland Council, Planning and Development Service tel: 01463 702509.