Managing a garden the size of world renowned National Trust gardens, Mount Stewart can present many challenges. Working on a site over 100 acres presents the tricky task of moving staff and materials from one part of the property to another.
Until recently this has been achieved by the use of petrol powered utility vehicles which are effective but not very environmentally friendly. Now the gardeners at Mount Stewart are transporting themselves and their flowers around the property using peddle power.
A bespoke bicycle, fitted with a trailer means heavy materials like plant, compost and tools can easily be biked around the vast gardens. Inspired by the child buggies you see while out and about, Paul Stewart, plant and propagation manager at Mount Stewart contacted local supplier, Bike Dock on the Ravenhill Road in Belfast.
Paul comments: “The cycle is not only an environmentally friendly mode of transport but very effective and quick. The bike is fitted with a trailer which is perfectly balanced so you can easily carry bales of compost, plants, tools and other heavy loads. The bicycle is capable of some off-road use which is necessary in a property as vast and geographically diverse as this one. Transportation is as quick as petrol powered utility vehicles and a lot less effort than walking, carrying or using a wheelbarrow or hand cart.”
This innovative venture is another way in which the National Trust are committing themselves to the challenge they set earlier this year of reducing their consumption of fossil fuels for heat and electricity by 50% by 2020.