CRAFTSPEOPLE
K
eyneston Mill Estate, in the idyllic countryside of the Tarrant Valley near Blandford Forum in Dorset, is home to Parterre Fragrances, founded by David and Julia Bridger in 2015. “We were already growing cut flowers and herbs when we went on a trip to the south of France,” Julia recalls. “We visited Grasse, the heart of the French perfume industry, and that inspired us to grow scented plants to create our own perfume.” On their return they set about finding a location for their venture. Six years on, a 50-acre estate has been transformed from fields of grass and nettles 74 THE ENGLISH GARDEN JULY 2021
Above Harvesting a large
basket of Achillea ‘Cerise Queen’ to distil its hayscented essential oil. Above right Julia and David Bridger, founders of Parterre Fragrances.
into a flourishing, aromatic hub, with formal gardens that double as trial beds; fields where crops such as vetiver, hyssop and scented geraniums are grown; and buildings that are home to a bistro and gift shop, plus venues for perfume-making workshops. David and Julia have gathered together some of the best in the business, including horticulturists who trained or worked at Kew, the RHS and the National Trust. They also work with Master Perfumer Jacques Chabert, who is based in Grasse and blends the essential oils they grow and distil to formulate Parterre’s bottled fragrances. The formal gardens at Parterre are known as the Collection Gardens. They are divided into four different areas, each focusing on a different perfume family – citrus, spice, floral and fougère, from the French word for fern. The floral section takes its inspiration from the Orto Botanico di Padova, the world’s oldest botanic garden, founded in the Italian city of Padua in 1545, and is a heady mix of roses, sweet peas, jasmine and lilies. These gardens are also where the Bridgers try out unusual plants, distilling them in small batches to see if they’re worth producing on a larger scale in the crop fields. “We grow about 1,500 different plants in the Collection Gardens,” explains Julia. “Some are grown in small quantities and we might not use them in the perfumes, but they’re there because they help us tell the story of the world of perfume for visitors.” The visiting public are actively encouraged to rub leaves and sniff flowers and to enjoy the immersive experience of being surrounded by these scented plants here at Parterre. “We grow our plants from seed and cuttings, planting them out in spring in rows in the fields or in
