Highland Carbon is raising funds to restore An Edible Forest Garden at Traquair House in Innerleithen, Scottish Borders.  Traquair is the oldest continually inhabited house in Scotland on one of the country's grandest estates.  The estate itself is adjacent to the River Tweed, the UK's most important salmon fishing river. 

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Visited by 27 Scottish Kings and Queens, Traquair dates back to 1107 and has been lived in by the Stuart family since 1491.  Originally a royal hunting lodge, Traquair played host to Mary Queen of Scots and later as staunch Catholics they supported the Jacobite cause without counting the cost.

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Traquair House is managed a Charitable Trust with the purpose of maintaining the house, managing the grounds, undertaking educational programmes and encouraging public access. The house and grounds are open to the public daily from April to October and has a busy annual programme of events as well as hosting weddings and other activities.

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The Edible Forest Garden will restore a disused part of the old walled garden next to some community allotments that have been active for around 10 years.  The Forest Garden is about the size of a football pitch.  It has excellent bones already, surrounded by vast hedges and mature statement trees.  Within the plot are mature and productive cherry trees.

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The garden, which has become overgrown, will be returned to its former splendour as a community resource.  Volunteers will do the work and the food produced will be available for them to take away. Contributions will support project design and management, plant materials and groundwork. 

 

It is hoped there will be opportunities for all ages to be involved including health and well being programmes and training which can be run in the wider grounds around Traquair.

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Highland Carbon is also selling a large offsetting project in the estate which comprises a vast new forest with mountain biking lanes, bridle paths and rambler access.  The access trails connect to the Tweed Valley Forest and to the Glentress Mountain Biking area.

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Please contact us for details on how to give: richard@highlandcarbon.com