Walled Garden Orchard 2019–2020

In 2019, we received funding of £4,900 from The Mushroom Trust. This, along with over £1,600 raised through sponsorship of the trees allowed us to plant an orchard of 37 apple and plum trees in another quadrant of the garden.

We purchased three picnic benches made by the Raasay Sawmill using Raasay-grown larch and planted over 8,000 spring flowering bulbs along the path.

COVID-19 delayed the delivery of the dedications until February 2021, when the hand-turned elm apples that open up to reveal the dedication engraved inside were finally unveiled to the tree sponsors.

The apples were made by Bob Hastie, a wood turner based on the Isle of Mull and the Oak Swill basket that the apples are displayed in was made by  Jane Yeomans, a basket maker from the Lake District who has family connections to the island.

Raasay Roots Shoots and Fruits 2017–2018

We knew that it would be too much work for a small group of volunteers to get the garden back into production so, in 2016, we applied successfully to the Climate Challenge Fund  for a grant of £61,000 which, along with £8,000 of RHCC’s own money, allowed us to move the project forward dramatically.

The year-long Raasay Roots Shoots and Fruits project allowed us to employ a full-time gardener and a part-time community engagement officer. We purchased three polytunnels, seeds, plants and trees, equipment and materials. Despite a few hiccups, we successfully grew around 300kg of produce which we sold to local businesses and through the community shop.

We held many successful and well attended events and workshops celebrating the garden and local food, advising on how to reduce our carbon footprint and learning new skills related to the project. The project enabled us to lay the foundations of a productive garden, with one quadrant producing salad, vegetables and fruit.

2007–2016

In 2007, the community of Raasay set up Raasay House Community Company (RHCC) to facilitate their purchase of Raasay House and grounds, the walled garden and some other small areas of land. In January 2009, a few weeks prior to the completion of the renovation of the house, a fire destroyed most of the building. It was rebuilt and finally reopened under lease to Raasay Outdoor Centre in April 2013.

The private lease on the walled garden ended in late 2013 and, following consultation with the community, it was decided to make the garden productive again, running it as a community project. A group of volunteers stepped forward and the Walled Garden Action Group was formed.

From 2014 to 2016 much work was done by the volunteers (assisted by a couple of pigs at one point) to plan the future of the garden and large areas were cleared and tidied. The original paths were uncovered, the neglected box hedging trimmed, large quantities of black plastic were lifted and the grass regularly mown.

1549–1979

The first mention of a garden in this area was in 1549, and by 1695 there was an ‘orchard with several sorts of berries, pot herbs etc’. At the time of Boswell and Johnson’s visit to Raasay House in 1773, the garden was ‘well stocked with kitchen stuff, gooseberries, raspberries, currants,  strawberries, apple-trees’ and the Ordnance Survey map of 1877 shows the greenhouses in place and the layout of the garden largely as it remains today.

In 1907, an advertisement for the sale of the estate noted the ‘flower and kitchen gardens well-stocked and in excellent order. There are also vineries, peach houses, hothouses and greenhouses’. 

The house, garden and estate changed hands many times over the years and was run as a hotel in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1979, the Highlands and Islands Development Board bought the estate and Raasay House was leased out and run as an outdoor centre. The garden was leased separately and eventually became overgrown and the greenhouses derelict.