A kitchen garden in the far north west is growing food for one of Scotland’s best restaurants.

On the southern shore of Loch Torridon, set against the spectacular scenery of Wester Ross, is a garden surrounded by high yew hedges where herbs and vegetables grow amongst fruit trees and flowers, peas and beans scramble up wigwams, currants and gooseberries ripen in the sunshine and Pink Fir Apples grow in rows alongside other potatoes chosen carefully for flavour.

From the grapes in the greenhouse to the salads and brassicas that are produced year-round in the polytunnel, all the food grown in this two-acre garden is destined to end up on the plates of diners who travel from around the world to experience the hospitality of The Torridon.

Scottish Gardener:

This five-star hotel is an enclave of luxury in the midst of one of Scotland’s most remote and wild landscapes and the garden that supplies its kitchens is as productive as it is beautiful.

It’s under the care of lead gardener Tom Stephenson who normally at this time of the year would be harvesting rhubarb and kale, building cloches for lettuces and setting out supports for peas and beans.

Things are different this May, but as lockdown is gradually lifted work is restarting to ensure that by the time guests return the garden will be at full production again.

Spring can herald in a dry spell, as it did this year, when the burns dry up and daily watering becomes essential, but growing on the edge of the Atlantic is not without its challenges.

Tom says: “We often get hit by weather fronts coming in from the sea, bringing with them heavy rain and high winds,”

And it’s not just the weather that can be an issue. Underfoot is a mixture of local Torridonian sandstone and soil that was originally used as ballast when building materials for the house were brought in by sea from Ireland in 1887.

“It is very acidic and its full of rocks, which can make planting difficult, but we work with what we’ve got. We make our own compost and we have an unrestricted supply of manure from the herd of Highland cattle on the estate.”

And the conditions don’t restrict Tom and his team because the range of produce that they grow is extensive and includes apples, soft fruit and berries, root vegetables, oriental greens and even wasabi.

Herbs such as lovage, rosemary and dill are essential ingredients for the chefs while tulips, astrantia, phlox and delphiniums are just some of the flowers used to decorate the hotel.

“We have a short growing season but the air is pure and the long daylight hours in summer make up for the late start, so the soft fruit in particular grows exceptionally well. Our strawberries are fantastic.”

Scottish Gardener:

Guests stroll in the garden and enjoy seeing the chefs selecting produce for the hotel and the adjacent inn.

“The chefs are frequently in the garden just as service is about to start in the evening, so the food couldn’t be fresher.

Because it is open to visitors, the garden has to look good as well as be productive, something that Tom, a graduate in fine art and sculpture, particularly enjoys.

Since he arrived in 2017 he has been using his combination of horticultural and design skills to fine-tune the garden, looking at it from a fresh perspective to see where it could be changed for the better.

His most recent project has been to create a gin garden that showcases the botanical ingredients, including blaeberry, rowan and Scots lovage, which are used in the making of The Torridon’s Arcturus Gin.

The ingredients for Arcturus are foraged from the land, mountains and sea surrounding The Torridon Resort and distilled at Dunnet Bay Distillery, the northernmost distillery in the UK.

The gin is named after a giant red star that is visible from Earth with the naked eye. It is at its brightest during the rutting of stags and it is said that hinds can only conceive at the rising of Arcturus.

In the Arctus Garden, with its star-shaped pond, guests can pick their own cocktail herbs and relax amongst the flowers, surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery in Scotland.

During lockdown, Paul Green, head chef at 1887, The Torridon’s fine dining restaurant, has been sharing recipes using seasonal produce on the hotel blog. We feature two of his favourites that make great use of the ingredients cultivated in the garden or growing wild on the estate within our Recipes section of the website.