The Origins of an Early R.B.G.E. Outstation :
The Dreams of Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour
Glenbranter Glen, Glenbranter Forest, Argyll : An Historical Perspective
John M. Hammond
Introduction :
There is little doubt that the vast number of plant introductions that took place in the early-1900’s, raised from wild collected seeds sent back by Wilson, Forest, Ward and others, gradually overwhelmed the resources of the highly regarded institutions at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh; Royal Botanic Garden, Kew and the Botanical Garden at Glasnevin. Not only had these institutions to cope with raising and assessing the seed in their own facilities, they were faced with waves of correspondence being generated by the ‘key’ gentleman gardeners of the era who were trying to understand the taxonomic variations in the seed that they were raising from seed originating from the same collections.
When Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour (31 March, 1853-30 November, 1922) was appointed Regius Keeper in 1888, following the death of Alexander Dickson in late-1887, he decided to devote himself to the study of rhododendrons and Edinburgh became the principle clearing house for the genus. This in turn led to a different sense of direction and approach. It was also clear to Sir Isaac that many of the immense number of new rhododendrons being raised and distributed by Edinburgh were unsuitable for the cold winds emanating from Scotland’s East Coast, and for the smoky conditions of urban Edinburgh. Similar urban conditions also prevailed at R.B.G., Kew and at Glenevin in Ireland, so Sir Isaac set himself a personal challenge to find a more suitable site for growing-on the new introductions, as this was essential if the species were to be assessed with any certainty as to their performance in cultivation. In the early-1920’s both the Forestry Commission and the R.B.G.E. were both directly involved in the planting of rhododendron species in the glen itself at Glenbranter; nevertheless, the arrangements under which the plantings were carried out, the details of exactly what plant material was planted and their origin, who carried out the work, and what happened to the plantings after the R.B.G.E. changed its allegiance, as a result of a more accessible location on Benmore Estate becoming available, has remained something of a conundrum for the better part of a century.
In early-1991 the author discussed the origins of the rhododendron plantings in Glenbranter Glen with the late-Mervyn Kessell, President of the Scottish Rhododendron Society, as by this date the circumstances under which the plantings had taken place had become folk law and no documentation was available to verify what had become the legendary ‘Lost Garden of Argyll’. Mervyn contacted William MacDonald, at the Kilmun Office of the Forestry Commission, to try to establish the historical background of the plantings; however, William’s response dated 8th March, 1991 indicated the only document that could be found in the Forestry Commission archive was Sir John Stirling-Maxwell’s short article taken from the Rhododendron Society Notes. Mervyn also drew a blank in discussions with the staff at Benmore Botanic Garden, so the matter was reluctantly shelved. The curtains close and open again three years ago when the R.S.C.G. became interested in the area of the Glen that had been used for the trial plantings as a possible location for establishing a rhododendron species collection, and in due course reached agreement in principle with the Forestry Commission. Last October, with Dr. David Chamberlain and Peter Cox at the helm, the Group achieved one of its objectives when it carried out a detailed survey of the remaining rhododendron species plants in the Glen. The results were transferred to an Excel spreadsheet and then entered on the Group’s BG-base database at the R.G.B., Edinburgh. This provided an incentive for further research work in an attempt to unravel the origin of the plants in the Glen and to establish a more cohesive timeline for who was involved, and when. As there is no substantive history to refer to about Glenbranter and the trial plantings, this article includes previously unpublished details, including the impact of the 1930’s Depression and WWII, as these provide a wider perspective as to why Glenbranter’s past remains so elusive.
Working Relationships at R.B.G., Edinburgh :
The Head Gardener at the R.B.G., Edinburgh was Robert Lewis Harrow (1867-1954). He was born at Tenterden, Kent where he trained at in the gardens of Heronden Hall. He entered R.B.G., Kew in 1891 on the recommendation of Mr. I. Lynch of the Cambridge Botanic Garden and in the passage of time became sub-foreman of the Fernery Department. A couple of years later, Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour was, with the consent of the Treasury, preparing to rebuild the range of glasshouses at Edinburgh, and came to Kew in search of a young man to take charge of that department. Robert L. Harrow was chosen on the recommendation of Sir William Thistleton Dyer, the Regius Keeper. A few years later he was appointed Assistant Head Gardener at Edinburgh, and on the resignation of Mr. A.D. Richardson he was appointed Head Gardener. Harrow soon demonstrated his skill as a cultivator at the garden, he was both courteous and helpful to his many friends in horticulture and was held in high esteem by all who knew him; his post was eventually reclassified as Curator c.1927. Sir Isaac and Harrow worked well together, and they in turn were supported by Laurence Baxter Stewart (1877-1934) who had made a special study of plant propagation. Stewart was born at Kirremuir where his father was Head Gardener at Kenordy and came to the R.B.G. in 1901 where he became a wizard propagator and succeeded in raising many plants that had previously resisted all attempts to propagate them vegetatively. Both Harrow and Stewart carried out their work unostentatiously and, whilst their names occasionally walk across the pages of archive documents connected with rhododendron history, many readers are not acquainted with the part they played in both raising, distributing and helping classify rhododendrons for a period of thirty years at Edinburgh.
Sir Isaac, son of John Hutton Balfour an earlier Regius Keeper at Edinburgh, he came from a family with a horticultural background and had been a member of the Royal Scottish Arboricultural Society and active in its affairs as early as 1873. He was especially interested in the introduction of new conifers, which had similar problems to rhododendrons in that they did not perform well when planted in a smoky urban environment on the cold, windy East Coast; so any new site for trial plantings would ideally need to be large enough to accommodate both rhododendrons and conifers.
The Search for a Suitable Outstation Site :
The need to find a suitable site for trialling new conifer introductions was of immense interest to the Forestry Commission, which was set up in 1917 to manage timber resources following the severe depletion caused by the First World War. It was also recognised that it was important that both students and the public had the opportunity to look at and study the new introductions.
It was most fortunate that one of the key personalities with a major involvement in Scottish Forestry, and a vested interest in the Forestry Commission, was Sir John Stirling-Maxwell of Pollock House, Glasgow. Sir John was a highly regarded forester and had purchased the Corrour Estate adjacent to Rannock Moor with the intention of carrying out high elevation experimental plantings of various conifers. The outbreak of war in 1914 found Britain almost wholly dependent upon imported timber and, whilst timber is an essential munition of war, it is also the most bulky of cargoes in relation to its value. As the war progressed it became evident from the depletion of home-grown timber resources that the government would have to address its ‘Laissez-fare’ policy with regard to forestry. Sir John was appointed to the Ackland Committee, along with Lord Lovat, in 1916 to consider and report upon the best means of conserving and developing the woodland and forestry resources in the post-war years. In 1917 the Committee made a detailed report and the following year an ‘Interim Forestry Authority’ was set-up, which drafted a Forestry Bill that was introduced to Parliament and became law as the Forestry Act of 1919. On 29th November that year the Commissioners were appointed and Sir John became an active member of the Forestry Commission under its Chairman, Lord Lovat.
Sir John also had a passionate interest in rhododendrons and was developing a large rhododendron collection to the east of Pollock House. He subscribed to several of the plant collecting expeditions of the era, shared seeds and plants with F.R.S. Balfour at Dawyck and Lord Stair at Lochinch, and was in regular correspondence with Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour. Sir John acted as a facilitator at a meeting held at Pollock House in October, 1920 between all the parties with an interest in locating a suitable site for trialling both rhododendrons and conifers. In the presence of Lord Lovat, Mr. John D. Sutherland (Assistant Commissioner of Forestry for Scotland) and Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour, agreement in principle was reached in less than five minutes in regard to the way forward. All that remained was for a suitable tract of land to be identified. A further verbal agreement between the parties was based on a suggestion by Sir Isaac that the trial plantings should be accessible for inspection by both the public and students so they could gain an understanding of the performance of the new introductions. So, Sir Isaac had an objective of creating an ‘outstation’, even if the mechanics of actually achieving the aim were yet to be worked out.
The sea-lochs of Scotland’s West Coast, carved out by glacial action, run roughly northeast – southwest across Argyll, leaving fingers of land that are often difficult to access other than by boat. Thus land, with acceptable climatic conditions for trialling new introductions, is not often readily accessible. In the early-1920’s the acquisition of large tracts of land by the State, under the 1919 Forestry Act, provided an opportunity to realise Sir Isaac’s dreams. Amongst the lands acquired was the Glenbranter Estate, previously a shooting lodge and lands owned by Sir Henry Lauder, perhaps better known as the famous Scottish music hall star and farmer, Harry Lauder (4 August, 1870-26 February, 1950). Glenbranter lies at the north end of Loch Eck and is sheltered by hills that rise to over 2000ft above sea level. It has a maritime climate with heavy rainfall and little frost.
Historical Background of Glenbranter :
Glenbranter once marked the northern extremity of the Loch Eck Forest, an area originally called ‘Innasraugh’ – The sheltered valley of the fleece – and the grazing of sheep accords with use of the slopes of the valley prior to the major plantations of conifers that were made in the later 19th Century. These lands were occupied by the Lamont Family who purchased the Benmore Estate, the Forest of Benmore, Coir-an-T and the Lands of Cur for £13,000 at a public sale in 1849. The source of the River Cur lies in the moors high above St. Catherines, on Loch Fyne, and falls quickly down to the back of Strachur where it turns sharply south-east and looses momentum before entering Loch Eck. It would appear that the Glenbranter Estate created towards the end of the 19th Century during the period that Benmore Estate was passed between various members of the Lamont Family. Invernoaden House, better known as Glenbranter House, was built on the Glenbranter Estate at this time by the MacBrayne Family and thus relegated Invernoaden Farmhouse (Glenbranter Farmhouse), a late-18th or early-19th structure, to a secondary property. The MacBraynes of Glenbranter had the coat of arms of O’Brien and, whilst said to belong to Argyllshire, the ‘locals’ considered they were ‘modern’ arrivals in Cowal, possibly from Ireland. In the early-1900’s the estate was acquired by Fitzcharles Macdonald of Strachur who had been very successful businessman in Glasgow. MacDonald purchased Carfin Hall, near Motherwell in 1915 and then sought to dispose of the Glenbranter Estate.
Harry Lauder, and his wife Annie, had acquired Gerhallow House, Bullwood, Dunoon in 1908 as their main residence, changing the name to Laudervale in 1912. Lauder is thought to have leased the Glenbranter Estate as early as 1913-14 and then decided to purchase the estate with the future intention of gifting the property to his son John and his fiancé Mildred Thomson. The estate included Glenbranter House on the west side of the valley and lands around the head of Loch Eck, Glenbranter Farm with 14,000 acres of sheep pasture and forest, together with the lands of Glenshelish, Ballimore and Ballibeg. Glenbranter Farm was partially rebuilt and the interior was upgraded as a residence for his son John.
At the outset of the First World War John Lauder joined the 8th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders and after training was sent to trenches in France. No sooner had the actual purchase been completed in October, 1916 than Captain John Lauder was killed in battle on December 28th, 1916, on the Somme, near Poizers. Harry & Annie were devastated and commissioned Henry Vallance to design, and Samuel Rose Cameron to sculpt, a large memorial that was erected in 1921 on a small wooded knoll, on the east side of the A815 near Glenbranter Farm, in John’s memory. Standing in an enclosure, surrounded by a cast iron railing, the site is thought to have been an Iron-age dun and commands a good view looking across Glenbranter and the upper reaches of Loch Eck.
The Acquisition of the Glenbranter Estate by the Forestry Commission :
Following John’s death the Lauders appear to have lost interest in the estate, and by 1916 there would have been problems finding staff for the house, whilst the cost of keeping the house in the appropriate style in the post-war years would have been a serious financial burden. In his own inimitable style, Harry Lauder noted in his autobiography :
All my life, right up to the time I became one myself, I had envied the landed gentleman with his life of freedom in the open air, his horses, his cattle, his dogs, his fruitful fields. Don’t, you believe a word of it. The picture is all wrong. I was lucky to get out of Glen Branter with my leather leggings and a haunch of preserved venison! Fortunately the Forestry Commission of the British Government came along with an offer soon after the war to take over the Glen for afforestation purposes. With bankruptcy staring me in the face, or at least, shall I say, peering its ugly head around the corner, I accepted the offer. I might be a good comedian, I told myself, but I had proved a rank failure as a prosperous country squire! Joking apart, however, we would have never left the Glen had John lived.
There is a reference that indicates the Lauder’s estate was put up for sale in 1920 and, according to a story in the New York Times, in December, 1921 the Forestry Commission offered Harry Lauder £22,000 for the estate, which he readily accepted and the sale was completed the following year. The Government retained the use of Glenbranter House, the lands around it, also the flat flood)!9problhe east side of the A815r. A few years later hagraph">There is lit backgluir, his horses,lenthe Forestry Commission of aMarch, R.have beevelFores A few years laterndimmis)hor had Johe Go8Halso aof t ver 2000ft abovackgl, I had e re devut Itrial plurceUr House on the wesaterndimmisstate by the Forestry Commission :