Plastics spotting at Kingston Lacy

The other week I visited the National Trust property Kingston Lacy.  I hadn't been before and thought the house was magnificent house and had beautiful grounds.  The gardens include lots of wild flowers set in large meadows, lots of huge trees, a Japanese garden, and a lovely kitchen garden.

I hadn't realised but on the day I visited I would be treated to a brass band playing in front of the house.  With the sun shining and the music playing it was a great moment to sit on the lawn and eat ice-cream.

Of course I can't visit a place like this without doing some plastics spotting.  What caught my eye on this occasion was a gravel path that travelled up a slope.

The slope was relatively steep and with the number of visitors walking up and down and being subjected to rain the path is at risk of erosion.  The gravel was, however, staying smoothly in place thanks to a grid of plastic.

The rigid honeycomb grid of polypropylene holds the aggregate in place and creates a stable ground that is strong enough to take light traffic including pedestrians and cyclists.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)