A ceremonial ribbon has been cut at the Gardens of Easton Lodge to celebrate a successful restoration project being completed.
Months of work have gone in to repairing the balustrade around the Peto lily pond in the Italian garden in Little Easton.
The work was undertaken by stonemasons, with balusters turned from hamstone brought in from Somerset to match the original stone.
The Gardens of Easton Lodge Preservation Trust launched an appeal for public help to fund the work last year.
The lily pond within the sunken Italian garden at the Historic England Grade II registered gardens is a key part of the Harold Peto legacy. The Countess of Warwick commissioned the garden makeover in 1902.
Volunteers, friends, neighbours and funders gathered for the ribbon-cutting, performed by Councillor Martin Foley, an Uttlesford district councillor for Thaxted and the Eastons, who is also an Essex county councillor.
One of the visitors, Betty, often visited the Gardens when she was a young girl and knew the Countess of Warwick.
Another visit, David, met the Countess’s son Maynard Greville. A third visitor shared pictures of her mother on a teaching training course at the Gardens in the early 1930s.
READ MORE:
Garden restoration appeal is launched
Countess of Warwick's Show set for 2021 return
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here