Natural ropes are ideal to use in the garden. They’re made from plants and therefore only deposit biodegradeable fibres into the soil.

And here’s an example of that – super-strong plant supports made from Manila Rope in the beautiful gardens of Newby Hall, close to Ripon in North Yorkshire.

Our thanks to Newby Hall and especially the gardening team for allowing us to share these pictures.

They demonstrate how a natural rope can be incorporated into a planting scheme or feature to add shape and strength, without looking too ‘structural’.

This was our “60mm Manila Rope” (it actually measures closer to 70mm, the diameter of thick natural ropes are notoriously generous!)

And in time you might be hard-put to spot the rope at all, as the foliage of the roses takes over in the spring and summer. (For rose enthusiasts, the two varierties here are ‘Appleblossom’ and ‘Veilchenbleu’.

See for yourself

The gardens of Newby Hall – like the magnificent house itself – are well worth a visit. They comprise a number of interlinking, themed gardens which visitors can browse at happy leisure. While the house was originally built by Sir Christopher Wren, the 25 acre garden has changed much over the years to retain their splendour as well as keeping pace with today’s tastes and climate. The formal garden you see today is the culmination of three generations of the Compton family striving to create a beautiful garden to surround the house.

As you can see from the aerial view (reproduced with kind permission from the Newby Hall website) the gardens and house are perfectly situated together.

All in all, well worth a visit, until the end of the season in September. So if you’re in the area – maybe staying, passing through or lucky enough to live in the area – you can buy tickets in advance on the website and plan a worthwhile day there.

And if you spot the Manila Rope plant supports, send us a photo, we’d love to see them!