St Peters RC Church Hamilton

Beautiful, beautiful Bodnant
Said to be – this is truthful –
‘Heaven on earth’.
A North Wales spectacular
Cherished by visitors the world over.
A garden of contrasts,
The 80 acres of ground drops dramatically away
From the formal terraces
Graced by lily ponds,
Across wild flower meadows and orchards,
Through man made glades,
To a dell of waterfalls
Set amidst towering trees.
Climbing back up towards the Georgian stately home,
The vistas are panoramic, dramatic,
Across the picturesque Conwy Valley
Where the river leisurely meanders.
Home to exotic trees and shrubs
Bodnant Gardens boasts
A diverse collection of rhododendrons
Spectacular in April and May.
Although it is fair to say,
Whatever the time of year,
Bodnant feels near to heaven.
For a while called ‘Bodnod’, correct in style,
‘Bod’ in Welsh meaning ‘dwelling’
Whilst ‘Nod’ means ‘A prominent place’.
When purchased by a rich industrialist,
Henry Davis Pochin buying in 1874,
For the grand sum of £62,500,
The estate with its walled gardens,
Shrubberies, park like lands and wood and plantations,
Retreated back to the more idyllic name.
‘Bodnant’ meaning ‘dwelling by a stream’.
Beautiful, beautiful Bodnant,
A horticultural jewel in the Welsh crown,
The garden there carries flamboyant flair,
Whatever the time of year, the season.
The reason? Care and consideration
As to what is planted where and how and why.
Each part of the garden boasts a speciality season.
Currently in May, this has to be
Those grassy glades home to the exotics
Of rich rhododendrons, some rare.

All spectacular in colour, enhancing the vista.
Only a short while previously,
The winner was the daffodil filled orchards,
Then the glorious garden borders full of tulips.
Summer is made splendid by the top terrace of roses,
The highest of the terraces with a breathtaking view,
Panoramic are the Carneddau Mountains.
The lily terrace is well worth a visit for its pond,
Where nearby the bays in between the buttresses
Of a long balustrade wall overlooking more mountains,
Are home to mass displays of hydrangeas.
The lengthy herbaceous border of pastel pink
And summer sweet fragrance of lavender,
Billows with ornamental grasses flourishing well into winter.
The north garden boasts in miniature an alpine bed.
Whilst supremely dominant are the oak, beech and yew
Alongside amazing acers and magnificent magnolias.
Shrubberies hold pride of place offering backbone,
Even in the floral scarcity of winter.
A place for poets, painters and philosophers, no doubt!
An ever changing, still enlivening garden of naturalism,
Romance, spectacle and grandeur, some areas left wilder
As this suits families with children set on discovery.
As a gardener’s work is never done,
Indeed here the work will not be outclassed, surpassed.
Beautiful, beautiful winter Bodnant
Set with spectacular views over the magnificent Snowdon range.
A winter wonder alone must be that annually
20,000 snowdrops are planted in February.
And there has been no mention yet of autumn,
Nor the loveliest of laburnum arches, tremendous!
The arch is indeed a horticultural marvel dazzling us,
By a 55 metre walk beneath a golden pergola.
And what can be said as to autumn?
There are glades in autumnal shades of glory.
A most fine fiery display, the landscape set on fire by colour.
From ginger, amber to russet red plus crimson,
From stunning scarlet to golden yellow and burnished bronze,
Some alongside a riverside, so reflected it shines beautifully twice over.
There is even an arboretum where to dwell,
Will offer much to tell about this place in autumn.
Yes, beautiful, beautiful Bodnant.
Surely it cannot be beaten!
Not if you want to discover colour.
This national treasure became international.
Certainly for many, here is the finest garden in Britain.

Famous for its exotic, some rare, spring collections,
The summer kaleidoscope of vivid colour,
Autumn taking over in dell and glade, some parts man made,
Other areas completely naturalistic, utterly fantastic.
In breathtaking autumnal colours
What shades of red, green, bronze, purple, golds.
Definitely time for photography!

No, surely, surely not! Lord, for all the glories of the four seasons at Bodnant I thank You. How beautiful
this ‘Heaven on earth’ is. Amen.

17.05.17