Glasshouses at Stockwood Park

Two glasshouses constructed around the mid-C19 by J Weeks and Co.

MATERIALS: red brick plinth supporting a glazed timber frame.

PLAN: the two greenhouses are laid out in a line within the southern corner of the large east walled garden. They are both rectangular on plan, the shorter one to the north-east and the longer one to the south-west.

EXTERIOR: the span glasshouses have the same design and construction except that the shorter one has eight bays and the longer one has 14 bays. Each bay consists of a row of four large fixed panes, divided by mullions (the outer two fluted) with shaped brackets which support the guttering running the length of the buildings. The wooden doors at the gable ends have three chamfered vertical panels and two tall glazed panels above. The sloping roofs have large, overlapped, slightly scalloped glass panes which channel rainwater away from the glazing bars into the guttering. Each end of the roof is surmounted by a wooden ball finial.

INTERIOR: this retains a high proportion of the original mechanisms for ventilation and temperature control. The ventilation system allows for the upper lights in the roof to be raised and lowered using long rods connected to the opening lights and operated by a lever, stamped with the maker’s mark. The lights along the sides of the greenhouses are opened in groups using a long horizontal rod connected to each bay. The rafters and apex of each bay are supported by ornate iron brackets. Some of the original lock and handle plates are no longer in situ but have been retained. The stone flag floors survive in places.

The shorter greenhouse is divided into two equal parts by a glazed wall resting on a brick plinth. The door is in the same style as the external doors. The greenhouse has a floating floor which stands on bricks to allow for constant temperature control but the heating pipes along the north-west side do not appear to be original. In the south-west end a series of brick plinths, painted white, survive along the south-east side to support the bench. At the north-east end, the propagation unit was built in the 1970s.

The longer greenhouse retains iron benches on either side at the south-west end, supported by the original ornate cast iron posts. The central iron bench supported by brick piers at the south-west end is possibly original but the central raised brick bed at the north-east end probably also dates to the 1970s when the propagation unit was built.

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 5 June 2025 to amend the language in the description