A Year in the Woods: Montalto through the Seasons by Paul Clements is published by Merrion Press.
In the summer of 1992, my wife and I sold our terraced house in Belfast because she wanted a garden. We moved to live in the Montalto estate near Ballynahinch in Co Down, where we had 400 acres on our doorstep, somewhat larger than she had anticipated. For a year, we rented the idyllic Lakeside cottage, which was around the corner from the main mansion house.
All Photography below by Trevor Ferris
The history of the estate stretches back to the 1760s, and since then, five dynasties have lived there up to the present occupants, the Wilson family, which runs it as a remarkable amenity forest. In 1798, the demesne was the site of the Battle of Ballynahinch when the grounds were at the centre of the failed insurrection by the United Irishmen.
Fast-forward to 1992 when I kept a journal of our time there. My notes concentred on the weather, especially storms and snowfalls, as well on the trees and the wildlife such as squirrels, hares, and birds found throughout the grounds.
Frequently I walked or cycled the paths, armed with binoculars, to identify the forest birds. The dawn chorus of early May, the true hallmark of a bright spring which started at 4.30 am, was a highlight of our time. An uplifting soundtrack, it was a cacophony of whistling, cawing and rich bubbling, where the blackbird was the undisputed lead vocalist with its endlessly inventive piercing but relaxed sweetness.
Living in the estate brought an appreciation of elusive treecreepers – known as the ‘ghost bird’ of the woods – goldfinches and long-tailed tits moving around the grounds in parties, hanging around in branches of oak, ash or sycamore. Thirty minutes spent observing birds can send spirits soaring and benefit mental health. It may be an exaggeration, but 33 years after our time in Montalto, I am still living in the afterglow of those twelve months.
Two decades after we left, new gardens were created, and a lost Victorian garden was uncovered. A fresh energy has brought a new dynamism to the running of the demesne, where numerous events are held. The gardening history is once again as compelling as its past, and worthy of the eighteenth-century heritage from which it stems.
