Mounton House, a stone and timbered house in Arts and Crafts/Vernacular style (nprn 20430), is located just outside and to the west of Chepstow. The gardens are important for their historic interest as an Arts and Crafts layout consisting of approach, formal gardens and wild woodland garden designed by Henry Avray Tipping (1855-1933) and providing the setting to Mounton House and its ancillary buildings. The integrated layout was designed as a whole and constructed in 1910-1912 by H. Avray Tipping in collaboration with the architect Eric Francis (1887-1976). Mounton was the second and grandest home of Tipping who lived in the house from 1912 to 1922, when he gave it to his brother’s godson, Major H.C.L Holden of Brasted, and moved to High Glanau near Trellech (266087).

The site is a level plateau with a precipitous slope below it to the north-west. It is approached by a long drive from the village of Pwllmeyric to the south-east. Near the house the drive enters a wide approach with wide grass verges between buttressed stone walls, flanked by outbuildings and cottages, in the same style as the house. The house is set back from the approach with a square forecourt and a central grass circle.
The gardens have two main components: the formal gardens, which lie mainly to the south-west and south-east around the house, and the wilder parts which lie in woodland south-west of the house and on the steep slope of the gorge to the north-west. 

The formal gardens consist of the approach, forecourt and pergola on the north side of the house and a long stone terrace and formal grass areas to the S. The approach has a tarmac drive with wide grass verges and fruit trees trained on the high flanking walls. The forecourt has a central grass circle and is separated from the approach by a low wall with urns on pedestals either side of the entrance (one has gone). Opposite the entrance are broad steps up to a level grass area (now with an adventure playground at its north end). At the north-west end of the approach, on the edge of the gorge, is a stone pergola from which there is a view of the unspoilt valley below. A winding track leads down the side of the gorge from the north-east end of the pergola.

To the south-west and south-east of the house is a formal garden in a series of rectilinear compartments. Immediately in front of the house is a long stone terrace, below which is a long grass bowling green surrounded on all but the north-east side by clipped yew hedging. This is rectangular, with apsidal north-west and south-east ends. It runs parallel to the terrace and extends southeastwards beyond it. To the south-east of the terrace is the cruciform pergola garden with simple stone piers surrounding a rectangular pool. This was a tribute to William Robinson, and was originally planted with roses (Dorothy Perkins, Lady Gay et al.) and wistarias (which survive), which were trained along the beams of the pergola. In the east corner of this garden is a two-storey timber-framed pavilion, called the tea-house, which overlooks a rectangular lawn to the south-east. The lawn is surrounded by walls on the north-west and south-east sides and by a yew hedge on the south-west side. To the north-east is a raised, stone-flagged area, called the parterre garden, with walls around it on all but the south-west side. There were originally beds of roses, delphiniums and Aster thomsoni in the paving, but these have now gone.

In l907 Tipping bought some land beside the stream at the foot of the Mounton gorge and constructed a water garden in natural style around the winding stream. This area (now in separate ownership) is now mostly grassed, the only landscaping left being a small pool, small arched bridge, and a few trees and shrubs, including a Portugal laurel next to the pool. The stream is partly canalized between stone walls. The woodland on the slopes above and to the south-west of the house have now reverted to unmanaged woodland, and the valley bottom has been incorporated into private gardens.

The original kitchen garden was on the north-east side of the approach, opposite the parterre garden, but only the walls now remain.

Sources:
Cadw 1994: Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest: Gwent (ref: PGW(Gt)8(MON)). 
RCAHMW air photos: 965073/54-5.