National Trust Gardens

Mottisfont Rose Gardens, June 2018

Categories Architectural Plants, Clematis, Climbing plants, Cottage Garden, David Austin roses, Fragrant plants, Friends, Fruit Trees, Garden Design, General comment, herbaceous, Iris, Mottisfont Abbey, National Trust Gardens, Open to the public, plants for roses, Roses, Seasonal colour, Summer gardenLeave a Comment on Mottisfont Rose Gardens, June 2018

June 2018 visiting Mottisfont with a fellow rose-lover. A day of laughter and fun. Overblown, blowsy, beautiful, fragrant, lush, a little ragged, absolutely in need of some serious dead-heading - but equally glamorous and hopelessly romantic, there are no rose gardens quite like Mottisfont. Soulful, they inhabit the walled gardens of this ancient priory, clambering…

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A few scribblings on creating a White Garden

Categories Acid-loving plants, Alpine, annuals, Architectural Plants, Autumn garden, Bedding, Bulbs, Camellias, Clematis, Climbing plants, conifers, container gardening, Dahlias, David Austin roses, evergreen perennial, Evergreen shrubs, Exotic, Flowering Cherry, Fragrant plants, General comment, Hellebore, herbaceous, Hydrangea, Iris, Magnolia, Mediterranean Garden, Mottisfont Abbey, National Trust Gardens, Ornamental trees, Rhododendron & Azalea, RHS WIsley, Roses, Seasonal colour, shade, Shrubs, Sissinghurst Castle, Snowdrops (Galanthus), Spring Garden, Summer garden, Trees, Trees for smaller gardens, White Garden, Wildlife gardening, Winter Garden, Wisteria, Woodland Garden2 Comments on A few scribblings on creating a White Garden

  Creating a White Garden Straight out of the block, I'm talking about green. And grey, silver, and variegation. We'll get to white but a few thoughts first. ‘Green is the backdrop to the garden but in its range of shades and textures, green has much more to offer as any foreground interest. Grey dims,…

Continue reading ➞ A few scribblings on creating a White Garden

Mottisfont Rose Gardens

Categories Architectural Plants, Clematis, Climbing plants, Cottage Garden, David Austin roses, Fragrant plants, Friends, Fruit Trees, Garden Design, General comment, herbaceous, Iris, Mottisfont Abbey, National Trust Gardens, Open to the public, plants for roses, Roses, Seasonal colour, Summer gardenLeave a Comment on Mottisfont Rose Gardens

Overblown, blowsy, beautiful, fragrant, lush, a little ragged, absolutely in need of some serious dead-heading - but equally glamorous and hopelessly romantic, there are no rose gardens quite like Mottisfont. Soulful, they inhabit the walled gardens of this ancient priory, clambering through the many venerable apple and pear tress, hopelessly constrained by box or lavender,…

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Cottage Gardens

Categories Architectural Plants, Bedding, Bulbs, Clematis, Climbing plants, colour, Composting, container gardening, Cottage Garden, Cutting Garden, Dahlias, dark foliage plants, David Austin roses, Dry Garden, evergreen perennial, Evergreen shrubs, Flowering Cherry, Fragrant plants, Fruit Trees, Garden Design, Great Dixter, Hellebore, herbaceous, Hydrangea, Iris, Kitchen Garden, late summer border, Mottisfont Abbey, National Trust Gardens, nerines, Open to the public, Organic Gardening, Organic pest control, Ornamental trees, Petersham Nurseries, plants for roses, Propagation, RHS WIsley, Roses, Seasonal colour, Seeds, Shrubs, soft fruit, Spring Garden, Summer garden, Trees for smaller gardens, Vegetables, Wild Food/Foraging, Wildlife gardeningLeave a Comment on Cottage Gardens

Phyllis Bide – the perfect rambling rose for a cottage garden – informal flowers in a muddle of apricot and cream – and not a monster either, like Kiftsgate or Wedding Day… The Story cover photo is from the Welcome to Yorkshire Garden at RHS Chelsea this year. Proof if it were needed of the…

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Jean Southwell and the Gertrude Jekyll Gardens at Lindisfarne

Categories General comment, National Trust Gardens, Open to the publicLeave a Comment on Jean Southwell and the Gertrude Jekyll Gardens at Lindisfarne

I travelled up to Newcastle-upon-Tyne this past few days to say a final goodbye to a good friend, Jean Southwell, whom I have known for nigh on 30 years and a woman who has been an inspiration and joy to me. And someone who taught a great appreciation for gin, it must me added. She…

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Back together again – explaining a near two-month absence….

Categories Architectural Plants, Art in the landscape, Autumn garden, Camellias, David Austin roses, Dry Garden, General comment, National Trust Gardens, Petersham Nurseries, RHS WIsley, Roses, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, The Savill Garden, Travel broadens the mind, Woodland Garden5 Comments on Back together again – explaining a near two-month absence….

Well, I've been rather busy ... Devon - The Garden House and Knightshayes Court Cornwall - Eden Project, Barbara Hepworth Garden, Trellisick, Lanhydrock Beth Chatto Gardens, Essex RHS Wisley, several times including their Autumn Fair Kew, several more times East Bergholt Arboretum/Place for Plants, Suffolk RHS Shades of Autumn Show, London Waterperry Gardens, Oxfordshire Waddesdon…

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From a wet Thursday… poppies, wisteria, foxgloves & roses – and a blurred view across Petersham Meadows

Categories Fragrant plants, National Trust Gardens, Open to the public, Petersham Nurseries, Roses, Seasonal colour, spring flowering, Spring Garden, Wildlife gardening, WisteriaLeave a Comment on From a wet Thursday… poppies, wisteria, foxgloves & roses – and a blurred view across Petersham Meadows

Rain, rain and more rain, yesterday - persistent and accompanied by chill winds too. Considering the balmy temperatures of the previous day it was quite a shock to the system! It did, however, provide an opportunity for some picture taking with the advantage of some photogenic rain drops...  

Winter Beauty at Osterley Park House and Gardens – a star clematis in the Winter Garden, yellow obelisks in the Tudor Garden, miniature horses in the meadow and… Batman

Categories Architectural Plants, Clematis, Climbing plants, Cutting Garden, General comment, Hellebore, Hydrangea, Lawn Care, Magnolia, National Trust Gardens, Open to the public, Ornamental trees, Pruning, Seasonal colour, Snowdrops (Galanthus), Winter GardenLeave a Comment on Winter Beauty at Osterley Park House and Gardens – a star clematis in the Winter Garden, yellow obelisks in the Tudor Garden, miniature horses in the meadow and… Batman

The Osterley Park estate, including Robert Adam House, formal gardens, parkland and extensive farmland, is rather a surprise, a great swathe of greenery within the urban sprawl of Hounslow, airplanes cutting across the skies from nearby Heathrow. It is one of the last remaining 'country estates' in London and under the care of the National…

Continue reading ➞ Winter Beauty at Osterley Park House and Gardens – a star clematis in the Winter Garden, yellow obelisks in the Tudor Garden, miniature horses in the meadow and… Batman