Emily Napper's garden is unusual. But its creation is typical of a sudden burst of enthusiasm which has driven the restoration of a number of old and fascinating gardens in Co Meath.
Until recently the only indication that Emily's home territory at Loughcrew was an area of some significance was a signpost bearing the legend "Family church of Blessed Oliver Plunkett". The word "blessed" had been painted out, presumably sometime since the saint's canonisation in October 1975.
In all respects the area was noted just for the megalithic tombs on a nearby hillside, which themselves attracted only a rare interest. Close to the ruined church, a line of tall, gnarled trees dipped their branches, providing some shelter for sheep.
Then along came Emily, who married Charlie, whose family had lived on the estate surrounding the church since just about the Plunkett's time.
The saint is recorded as having hidden out under the shadow of Slieve Gullion, and Emily formed a theory that the tower house adjacent to the church was probably the Plunkett family home.
With the aid of a feasibility grant from Meath Leader II, she also discovered the foundations of a 17th-century longhouse, and she knew the gnarled trees were yews, part of an ancient yew walk which, legend has it, was planted by the Plunketts.
Weeds and undergrowth were stripped back to reveal the stonework of the old walled garden. Canals and a water mill were restored and water gardens, specimen trees, follies, rockeries and the yew and lime walks were all painstakingly restored with the aid of FAS and a grant from the European Regional Development Fund, under its Great Gardens of Ireland Restoration Scheme.
Indulging an artistic bent, Emily added statues and the portico of a former Loughcrew House - for use as a ruined temple - and many new features of the gardens, including the imposing gates, have been created using recycled yew.
ANOTHER recent entrant to the Meath gardens initiative is Ballinalough Castle, which the Nugent family opened for business last year, assisted again by the ERDF Great Gardens of Ireland Programme and FAS. Ballinlough also dates from the 17th century and is perched on a magnificent setting between two lakes. The driving force here is Sir John Nugent, who has been working on the restoration since 1994.
The walled garden covers 1.2 hectares and is divided into four walled sections. On view are herbaceous borders, a grass tennis court, a lily pond, a herb and soft fruit garden and a well stocked orchard. There are lakeside walks, a water garden, a rustic summer house and dramatic views of the castle and its demesne
A THIRD garden to open recently is Daphne and Jonathan Shackleton's Lakeview Gardens. A smaller project than Ballinlough, the gardens are set against the backdrop of a rambling house overlooking Mullagh Lake, near Kells. Cut stone walls enclose an acre of sloping gardens with rare and unusual plants, many originating from the famous Shackleton plant collection, and there is also a small specialist plant nursery where plants seen in the garden can be purchased. Also worth seeing is the old orchard with ancient rose-covered apple trees and a traditional whitewashed farmyard.
Much of the surrounding land, with its flower-filled meadows, naturalised bulbs and 19th-century ornamental tree planting scheme, is farmed to organic standards.
BUTTERSTREAM Gardens is a modern creation - having been worked on single-handedly by Jim Reynolds since the mid-1970s. Hedges of beech, thorn and yew frame different areas focused on an architectural feature, an urn or a seat, It is a garden of surprises and understatement, described by House and Garden as the most imaginative garden in Ireland.
GLEBE Gardens are two prize-winning gardens, Glebelands dating from 1813 and Glebewood from 1990. The older and more mature garden is set in undulating land, emphasised by low stone walls and bounded by indigenous trees. The two gardens provide a series of free-flowing spaces linking tranquil secluded areas.
GROVE Gardens and Tropical Bird Sanctuary opened to the public in 1992 and covers four acres. It houses one of Europe's largest collections of clematis roses. The tropical bird sanctuary is a recent visitor attraction and is home to a large variety of exotic and rare birds.
LARCHILL Arcadian Gardens is the only European example of the mid 18th-century garden known as a ferme ornee. It represents a link between the formal garden and the fully-fledged, 18th-century landscaped Brownian park. There are 10 follies set in 26 hectares of parkland and situated along a circular walk through beech avenues. There are special resting places and gazebos with fabulous views of the Wicklow Mountains.
HAMWOOD in Dunboyne is a house and garden in the Palladian style. The Hamilton family has lived here since the house was built by Charles Hamilton in 1779. The walled garden contains a restored rock garden, and the pine walk is planted with cedars, pines, spring bulbs and camelias. There is also a rose garden stocked with old fashioned roses.
The number of gardens in Co Meath is in itself nothing special but, as Sir John Nugent of Ballinlough points out, their joint marketing under Meath Leader II gives them significant promotional power. The marketing is very important and Meath Leader II recently brought all the garden owners together for a initiative which involved the production of a brochure detailing each of the gardens and promoting the whole under the Meath Leader brand.
"We are all run independently but that initiative put 50,000 brochures in our hands for distribution," says Sir John. Christine O'Shea, chief executive of Meath Leader II, is the person who saw the potential to promote all the gardens under the Meath banner. Will it challenge Wicklow? "We'd like that," she laughs.
Jane Powers is on holidays