West Dean Gardens launches appeal to restore its working Victorian glasshouses

This article originally appeared on Culture24.

The magnificent Victorian glass houses at West Dean Gardens are in need of some tender loving care

They are among the few remaining in active use in the UK, and the Victorian glasshouses in the walled Kitchen Garden at West Dean Gardens are still producing healthy crops of tomatoes cucumbers, pineapples and vines - 115 years after they were built.

Now an appeal has been launched to restore two of the valuable historic buildings, built by Foster and Pearson between 1891 and 1900, which remain working examples of the social aspirations and technological advancements of Victorian Britain.

Two of the glasshouses are in need of urgent repair. It will cost more than £30,000 to carry out restoration work on each of them.

Describing them as “a treasure for all gardeners”, TV horticulturalist Monty Don called the houses "an inspirational model of how best to use any greenhouse.”

Green-fingered visitors in search of tips at West Dean can explore the 13 restored examples as part of a garden complex that includes four sets of glass frames, a walled garden, a kitchen garden, orchards, ornamental gardens, spring, wild and woodland gardens, arboretum and a newly restored sunken garden.

The West Dean Estate was bought by William James in 1892 before becoming a social centre for the elite, with Edward VII a frequent visitor to its shooting parties.

The opulent lifestyle created huge demands on the kitchen garden and its 22 dedicated gardeners. Glasshouses were heated by a boiler which had to be stoked by hand through the night in order to grow copious varieties of fruit, flowers and vegetables.

Today many of the remaining walled gardens in the UK have lost their original glasshouses. But at West Dean, more than 35,000 visitors enjoy them each year - learning about both Victorian engineering in gardening at the same time.

• Visit www.westdean.org.uk/appeal to make a donation.

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Source: http://www.culture24.org.uk//history-and-heritage/historic-buildings/art506872-west-dean-gardens-launches-appeal-to-restore-its-working-victorian-glasshouses