Walled Garden With Gates And Gate Piers, Mavisbank House, Lasswade, Midlothian

Entry Name: Walled Garden With Gates And Gate Piers, Mavisbank House

Listing Name: Mavisbank House, Walled Gardens, Including Gates and Gatepiers

Listing Date: 22 January 1971

Category: A

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 390859

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB44166

Building Class: Cultural

ID on this website: 200390859

Location: Lasswade

County: Midlothian

Electoral Ward: Midlothian West

Parish: Lasswade

Traditional County: Midlothian

Tagged with: House

Description

Circa 1730.

1739. Large horseshoe-plan walled garden with smaller triangular-plan walled garden adjoining to SW; gates to NW, NE and SE and road access from former dairy to SW; lean-to potting sheds on S boundary of horeshoe-plan garden, now converted to house and garage. Ashlar sandstone with brick inner facing; flat ashlar cope. NW GATEWAY: steps up to square-plan channelled sandstone ashlar gatepiers; moulded cornice supported by highly carved foliate scrolled consoles; decorative iron gates; flanking wrought-iron arrow-headed railings; gateway now boarded (1996). NE GATEWAY: square-plan channelled ashlar sandstone with moulded ashlar cornice and square cap. Arrow-headed wrought-iron gates now boarded. SE GATEWAY: droved sandstone; square-plan, chamfered with flat ashlar copes; wrought-iron gates (not now in use).

FORMER POTTING SHED: single storey, 4-bay potting shed to S of garden, converted to cottage. Sandstone rubble with painted entrance elevation and corrugated-iron roof. Boarded door in extreme left bay; 12-pane sash and case window in each remaining bay. Modern addition to rear. Lean-to painted sandstone wood shed opposite with 3 boarded doors and flat, ashlar coped roof. Lean-to painted sandstone garage conversion to E with 2 sliding boarded garage doors with flanking windows and corrugated iron roof. Cast-iron rainwater goods.

Statement of Interest

The walled gardens lie out of sight, to SE of the house, positioned in a sheltered area by the river, flanked along the W side by woodland, and a belt of trees to the E. The plan is particularly unusual, as gardens with curved walls were thought to cause the wind to eddy, retarding the ripening of fruit. Although the original garden walls remain, the only early planting appears to be two yew hedges, running parallel in the centre of the garden and two yew trees at the NE end of what would have been a central footpath. It is now in use as a commercial nursery whose buildings lie outside the walls to the E. The smaller garden contains the gazebo (see separate list entyry). A-group with Mavisbank House, Doocot, Dairy, Gazebo, Ice House and Game Larder, East Lodge (Kevock Road, Lasswade).

External Links

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