A CASTLE GARDEN BY THE SEA
The design of Tjolöholm’s castle gardens and parkland was possibly architect Lars Israel Wahlman’s most prestigious private garden commission. Tjolöholm Castle has an amazing environment thanks to Wahlman’s apparently economically unrestricted design.
The castle is situated by the sea in a hollow and protected by cliffs. The castle environment differs undeniably from the surrounding archipelago landscape, and the sea’s proximity is ever present. The Garden seems to change, not only with the seasons but also as the hours of the day go by. The garden nearest the castle is disciplined and neat, but it changes gradually to adapt to the surrounding countryside. The castle seems to grow up out of its surroundings!
The Tjolöholm peninsula is renowned for its diverse wildlife and breathtaking views of the ocean. Countless paths and trails run through ancient oak forests, coastal meadows and deciduous woodland.
There is a long tradition of bathing at Tjolöholm. Generations of visitors have enjoyed swimming in the salt water by the castle.
WILD NATURE AND STRICT ARCHITECTURE
A house without a garden was an unfinished work, according to the architect Wahlman – it was an architect’s duty to design the garden as a continuation of the house. Like the castle, Wahlman’s garden is inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement. He used hedges and walls to create individual spaces, and terraces to link the strict garden to the wilder countryside that surrounds it.
The new castle garden was planned in 1900, and today few signs of the previous garden remains. The pleached lime hedge that follows the road up to the castle was presumably planted during the 1700’s, and the walls that run down towards the large lawn come from the previous garden.
The large lawn to the north of the castle originally housed a glasshouse, vegetable gardens, flowerbeds and an irrigation dam. Peaches, nectarines and grapes were grown in the glasshouse. Produce that wasn’t used at the castle was sent to the apartment in Gothenburg or to Stockholm where Blanche Bonde lived.