$7.99 SIX GORGEOUS BRITISH GARDENS AT THEIR SEASONAL BEST GARDEN THEenglish For everyone who loves beautiful gardensNOVEMBER 2022 PANICUM The grass that goes with everything FAVOURITEPICKEXPERTSTHEIR BULBS Autumn’s Rich Hues Flowers and foliage in vivid fall colours Explore the gardens of HEREFORDSHIRE
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NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 3
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Welcome T
his issue is just the ticket for anyone who feels down in the dumps at the onset of autumn.
Gareth Richards Gareth is a garden writer and editor for websites, podcasts and print. He is a keen gardener, allotmenteer and keeper of bees and chickens. He visits The Old Rectory’s garden in onNorthamptonshirepage30.
The other reason to embrace autumn is that it’s also such a good time to plant, with warm soils and more reliable rain helping new additions get o to the best possible start. We associate autumn with planting bulbs, but don’t stop there –perennials, shrubs and trees will all do well planted now. Ever since I came to see autumn as The Season of Treating Myself to Plants, the end of summer has been much easier to bear!
ON THE COVER Bold colour from rooperiKniphofia , dahlias and aconitums at the Dower House in byPhotographedDerbyshire.CliveNichols.
Dianna Jazwinski Dianna is a photographergardenwith an interest in exploring and ofplants.photographingShesellsprintsherpersonalworkat mybotanicalheart.com and her images of airy panicums feature on page 63.
CLARE FOGGETT, EDITOR Louise Curley Louise includingauthorwriter.becominghorticulturestudiedbeforeafreelanceSheistheoftwobooks, The Cut Flower Patch. She explores the garden at Acomb High House in Hexham on page 22.
Summer may be over, but autumn is full of colour from both flowers and foliage, with lots of delightful plants to discover. Wellestablished gardens such as Hergest Croft in Herefordshire and Feeringbury Manor in Essex are a sensation at this time of year, while you need look no further than Matthew Wilson’s design for Acomb High House in Hexham, Northumberland, for plants that will ensure plenty of autumn interest, with asters and grasses thronging around stylish beehives of beech. Meanwhile, at The Dower House in Melbourne, Derbyshire, Griselda Kerr may have written the excellent book The Apprehensive Gardener, but her garden shows she knows how to plant fearlessly to great e ect at this time of year.
CONTRIBUTORS
IMAGES CURLEYIANJAZWINSKI;DIANNALLOYD;JAYNE
32 Bourne Lane, Much Hadham, Herts SG10 6ER, UK. Tel +44 (0)1279 www.alitags.comwww.alitags.com842685Annual labelling is a thing of the past with Alitags. Simply write on Alitag aluminium labels with Alitag or HB pencil. The pencil will react with our specially made aluminium tags and become permanent. Alitag labels can also be punched with Alitag character punches & jig. Copper, Teak, Bamboo, Oak labels, numbered tags are also available. High Quality Traditional, Contemporary and Bespoke Garden Furniture Crafted and made in the UK Made from hardwood Iroko or Oak HERTFORDSHIRE SG106ER, UK. Tel +44 (0)1279 842685 www.andrewcrace.com
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 5 1992-2022: Celebrating 30 years of delighting visitors on exclusive garden tours. Join us and experience the sights and scents of the most glorious gardens in Britain & Ireland. www.sisley.co.uk For everyone who loves beautiful gardens The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd, Jubilee House, 2 Jubilee Place, London SW3 3TQ Tel: +44 (0)20 7349 3700 Email: theenglishgarden@chelseamagazines.com Editorial EDITOR Clare Foggett DEPUTYEDITOR Vivienne Hambly ARTEDITOR Jeremy Bird PRODUCTIONEDITOR Vanessa Longworth ONLINEEDITOR Phoebe Jayes Advertising GROUPSALESDIRECTOR Catherine Chapman HEADOFSALESOPERATIONS Jodie Green BUSINESSDEVELOPMENTMANAGER Samantha Toro Tel: +44 (0)207 349 3782; samantha.toro@chelseamagazines.com ADVERTISINGMANAGER Astrid Elsen, Tel: +44 (0)20 7349 3743; astrid.elsen@chelseamagazines.com ADVERTISINGPRODUCTION allpointsmedia US Advertising MICHELMANZO Office: 610-527-7047; Cell: 215-470-7075; Email: mmanzo@manzomediagroup.com KIMRICHARDS Office: 610-527-7047; Cell: 610-812-8251 Email: krichards@manzomediagroup.com US Subscriptions To subscribe to The English Garden Tel: www.britsubs.com/englishgarden1-800-998-0807 Publishing CHAIRMAN Paul Dobson MANAGINGDIRECTOR James Dobson CHIEFFINANCIALOFFICER Vicki Gavin PUBLISHER Caroline Scott CIRCULATIONMANAGER Daniel Webb BUSINESSOPERATIONSMANAGER Sarah Porter EATOCHAIRMAN Sophie Easton Online GROUPDIGITALMANAGER Ben Iskander EMAIL & DIGITALCREATIVEMANAGER Jenny Choo Production REPROGRAPHICSMANAGER Neil Puttnam PRINTING William Gibbons Ltd, Willenhall, UK Subscription Offices: USA: The English Garden, PO Box 37518, Boone, IA 50037-0518. Tel: 800-998-0807 (toll free). Email: egrcustserv@cdsfulfillment.com Canada: The English Garden, 1415 Janette Avenue, Windsor, ON N8X 1Z1. Tel: 1-800-998-0807 (toll free). Email: egrcustserv@cdsfulfillment.com Europe & Rest of World: Tel: +44 (0)1858 438854. Email: theenglishgarden@subscription.co.uk Subscription Rates: USA: $39.75 (6 issues). Canada: $49.75, which includes GST/postal surcharge. Canadian GST reg. no. 87211 8922 RT0001. News Distribution: USA and Canada: CMG, LLC/155 Village Blvd, 3rd Floor, Princeton. NJ 08540, USA. Rest of World: Seymour, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London EC1A 9PT, England. Tel: +44 (0)20 7429 4000. USA Publication Details: The English Garden (ISSN 1361-2840; USPS 015-526) is published bimonthly by The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd, Jubilee House, 2 Jubilee Place, London SW3 3TQ, England. Distributed in the US by NPS Media Group, 2 Enterprise Drive, Suite 420, Shelton, CT 06484. Periodicals postage paid at Shelton, CT and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to: The English Garden, PO Box 37518, Boone, IA 50037-0518. Canadian Publications Mail Agreement Number 40111976, 1415 Janette Ave, Windsor ON N8X 1ZI. The English Garden (Print) ISSN no 1361-2840. Printed in England. The English Garden (Online) ISSN no 2397-7094. theenglishgarden.co.uk © The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd 2022. All rights reserved. Text and pictures are copyright restricted and must not be reproduced without permission of the publishers. The information in The English Garden has been published in good faith and every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy. However, where appropriate, you are advised to check prices, opening times and dates etc before making final arrangements. All liability for loss, disappointment, negligence or damage caused by reliance on the information within this publication is hereby excluded. The opinions expressed by the contributors of The English Garden are not necessarily those of the publisher. www.chelseamagazines.com: publishers of The English Home, Artists & Illustrators, Baby, Little London, Wedding Ideas, BRITAIN, Discover Britain, Cruise International, Independent School Parent and associated guides, Racecar Engineering, Classic Boat, Sailing Today, Yachts & Yachting and Popshot. The PublishersProfessionalAssociation Member
Plants 63 Plant Focus At the Sussex Prairie Garden, Paul and Pauline McBride cultivate a range of grasses, but panicum are among the easiest.
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Feeringbury Manor This historic Essex garden of exquisite form and rare botanical treasures has been developed over 40 years by Giles and Sonia Coode-Adams.
Design 77 Craftspeople Sitting Spiritually founder Martin Young builds beautiful swinging chairs.
6 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 22 6946 63 Gardens
69
The Old Rectory In Northamptonshire, Kate Toller has used signature colours to forge a balanced garden of tranquil delights out of the encroaching wilderness.
12
Acomb High House This Matthew Wilson-designed garden in Northumberland ticked a lawn and potager o the owners’ wish list, along with a dreamy Monet Garden.
54 Hergest Croft A collection of unusual trees, some dating back to the glory days of the Victorian plant hunters, feature at this garden and arboretum in the Welsh Marches.
Bulbs Three experts present their signature recipes for spring bulb displays.
46
CONTENTS November 2022 12 46 3822 3054
The Dower House Griselda Kerr’s book may be called The Apprehensive Gardener, but her Derbyshire garden is the work of a bold and confident plantswoman.
38 Broadwoodside Developed from dilapidation over 20 years by Robert and Anna Dalrymple, the warm colours of both buildings and planting at this East Lothian garden reflect the love poured into it.
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ONE YEAR GOOD GARDENING DIPLOMA
Photo: R Alexander
LongTel:Email:www.englishgardeningschool.co.ukinfo@englishgardeningschool.co.uk+44(0)1730818373establishedastheleaderinalldesignand
Based at the Chelsea Physic Garden and led by Rosemary Alexander and architect Catriona Rowbotham, the course is an overview of Garden Design, covering all the elements needed to rethink an average garden. Taking students step by step through site surveying, using the grid, horizontal and vertical features, garden layouts and planting plans, costing and specification, plus drawing tuition and homework on design and plant portfolios. Tutors are well respected in the industry and will guide students on how to succeed in this diverse profession.
Not sure which Diploma course is for you? Come along to an information session to see our location and find out more. gardening tuition and based at the unique and historic Chelsea Physic Garden
January – March 2023
(1 day a week (Tues), 10.30am–3.15pm, over three terms)
(2 days a week (Wed & Thur) 10.30am-3.15pm, plus 2 days homework)
A stepping stone to a new career. These two correspondence courses are a step by step guide to either designing your own garden or learning how to plant and maintain an existing garden: drawing up plans, hard landscaping, site analysis, planting, month by month tasks etc. Taught through a comprehensive course book, with projects submitted to us. 1-3 years to complete and individual assessment.
BOOKING NOWGarden Makers Day 2 November with Ambra Edwards, Jo Thompson and Xa Tollemache
ll Garden of Medicinal Plants – Chelsea Physic Garden
One of our most popular courses, led by master horticulturalist Ben Pope, which aims to take each student through all the practical elements of caring for a garden from soil, tools, maintenance, seed sowing and propagating, weed control and pests and diseases. The first 3 days will be spent with lectures at the Chelsea Physic Garden and the final day will be spent gaining practical experience in Rosemary Alexander’s much praised garden near Petersfield and another private garden nearby, where Ben is in charge. Participants will be given a chance to prune, plant, sow seeds and regular maintenance tasks will be discussed. A light lunch and refreshments will be provided daily.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 7
GARDEN DESIGN & CARING FOR YOUR GARDEN Distance Learning Courses study anytime, anywhere in the world
Covers the best in planting design while training in the more serious aspects of horticultural techniques. Practical sessions held at Arundel Castle under the guidance of head gardener Martin Duncan and at Sandhill Farm House, Rogate. Lectures by many leading gardening personalities and regular visits to exclusive private gardens. Students also learn to draw up planting plans.
September 2022 – beginning July 2023
IMAGES STOCKENNICOLANICHOLS;CLIVEJAZWINSKI;DIANNAOMIOTEK-TOTT;ANNABLOOM;RICHARD Regulars 8 On Location Bucolic Herefordshire is famous for its cider orchards. 10 Out & About News, events, jobs to do – and the best gardens with glasshouses 82 Last Word Katherine Swift on the remembrance and regeneration symbolised by blood-red field poppies. Offers 62 Subscribe & Save Subscribe to our sister title, The English Home, and save money. 54 Enjoy more gorgeous gardens, quintessential English style, beautiful plants and expert gardening advice sent direct to your inbox! To receive The English Garden’s latest news and exclusive letters from the Editor by email, simply visit theenglishgarden.co.uk/US-newsletter and enter your email address. Keep up to date
THE ESSENTIAL GARDEN DESIGN DIPLOMA
GARDENING FOR BEGINNERS Wednesday & Thursday 19, 20, 26, 27 April 2023
A River Runs through It
Bisected by the River Wye, this bucolic county is famous for its cider orchards HEREFORDSHIRE
his quiet county in the far west of England may take some time to reach, but its striking autumn scenery will reward any long journey. It forms part of the Marches, the ancient border territories straddling England and Wales. To the east lie the majestic Malvern Hills, and winding through the centre is the great River Wye, the valley of which is burnished with colour in October and November.
Hereford, the county town, is arguably best known for its sandstone cathedral. Christian worship has taken place on this site since at least the eighth century, but the cathedral (herefordcathedral.org) itself dates from 1079. In the cathedral library find the Mappa Mundi, the famed medieval map of the world, which was drawn in the 14th century. The library also contains one of 12 surviving copies of the Magna Carta, the charter of rights agreed in 1215.
Trains run from London Euston to Hereford via Birmingham and take around three hours and 30 minutes. The drive is around 140 miles.
8 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 ON LOCATION
T
A PLACE TO STAY Castle House is a boutique hotel in central Hereford. It occupies an elegant Georgian villa built beside the remains of the Hereford Castle moat, which dates from the 11th and 12th centuries. Today the hotel is run by a local farming family, the Watkins, and much of the seasonal fare on the well-regarded menu comes from their farm and kitchen gardens. castlehse.co.uk
A MEAL TO ENJOY Where two old drovers’ roads meet in the village of Titley, find The Stagg. Around a 40-minute drive from Hereford, and 20 minutes from Leominster, this pub with rooms has previously held a Michelin star for its local, seasonal menu. Expect the likes of Herefordshire beef, Wye Valley asparagus, Welsh rarebit and slow-cooked pork with apples. thestagg.co.uk
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 9
Stay in a historic hotel, sample local cuisine in the village of Titley and go shopping in Ross-on-Wye
A LOCAL SHOP For a diverting shopping experience, drop in on Baileys Home Store on the outskirts of Ross-onWye. Housed in old farm buildings, this popular shopping destination stocks thoughtfully made and collated pieces for the home and garden. Expect outdoor lights, recycled pots and desirable garden tools. baileyshome.com
IMAGE SHUTTERSTOCK
Herefordshire is also known for its cider, and at this time of year orchards are groaning with ripe fruit. Bulmers and Westons are among the big-name makers, but there are many small-scale artisan producers, with tours and tastings available. To view both award-winning cider orchards and a beautiful garden, visit Stockton Bury Gardens (stocktonbury.co.uk), run by Tamsin Westhorpe and her uncles and set on a farm near Leominster. Not far away is Hergest Croft (hergest.co.uk), with trees and shrubs brought to the UK by plant hunter Ernest Wilson. And south of Hereford, fi nd The Laskett Gardens (thelaskett.org.uk), the creation of Sir Roy Strong and his late wife Julia Trevelyan Oman. Care of this garden was recently transferred to Perennial, the charity for gardeners in need. ■
The ofthroughRivercoursemeanderingofthebeautifulWye,whichloopsthecountyHerefordshire.
Great Escapes
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Boasting the world’s largest surviving Victorian glasshouse in the Temperate House, the Palm House, with its spiral staircases, and the Princess of Wales Conservatory, Kew, in Richmond, London takes the crown. Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 5655; kew.org
NOVEMBER
Eden Project
Autumn jobs
Phoebe Jayes recommends some of the UK’s best gardens with glasshouses and rounds up outdoor jobs to do in late autumn – as well as the latest news winter months.
The Gothic-style arched structure of She eld’s Winter Garden (below) is 22m high and provides a green oasis in the heart of the city. Here you’ll find a display of more than 2,500 plants from around the world. she eld.gov.uk Clumber Park Once the abode of the Duke of Newcastle, Clumber Park is spread across 3,800 acres. Head to the Walled Kitchen Garden to visit the iconic Long Range glasshouse, which, at 130m long, is divided into 13 sections. Tel: +44 (0)1909 544917; nationaltrust.org.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1726 811911; edenproject.com
When the weather takes a turn for the worse, head for one of the country’s finest glasshouses. These five will keep you warm and dry
The Winter Garden
Out & About
10 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
The world’s largest glasshouse is situated in Cornwall on the site of a former clay quarry. It’s divided into two balloonlike ‘biomes’ climaticMediterraneanmimickingandrainforestzones.
Down House Charles Darwin lived at Down House in Kent, and the gardens here were his outdoor laboratory. The blue-framed glasshouse (above) contains the same species of orchids, climbers and carnivorous plants that Darwin used in his projects. Tel: +44 (0)1689 859119; english-heritage.org.uk
Prune old roses by cutting out dead, diseased, weak and crossing winterfrost-freecormsbegoniasliftdoneifandbeansoverwinteringgarden,toislatetreesleavesbackandpleasingoldwoodremovingbyremainingshorteninggrowth,theshootsonethird,andsomeoldercompletely.Clearbordersofgrowth,leavingseedheadsstemsbutcuttinganymessyspentandflowers.Orderbare-rootfruitandbushesnow;autumnandwintertheidealtimeofyearplantthem.Inthevegetablesowallbroadandpeasoutsidenetallbrassicasyouhaven’talreadyso.Afterthefirstfrost,dahliatubers,andgladiolustostoreinashedoverthemonths.
Under COVER
Fans of period drama Downton Abbey will instantly recognise Highclere Castle in Berkshire, the impressively grand country house built in Jacobethan style by architect Charles Barry. They might also follow Fiona, Lady Carnarvon’s Instagram posts or read her blog, both of which give an insight into real life at the castle. Now, Lady Carnarvon has launched a new private members’ club, Friends of Highclere, for an even better behind-the-scenes experience. Visit friendsofhighclere.com for information.
ROMAN recreation
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 11 IMAGES
SHUTTERSTOCKHUNTER;ELLIEHERITAGE;ENGLISH
At Holkham Hall in Norfolk, work to rejuvenate the seven-acre walled garden has recently been completed. The renovation work included restoration of the Samuel Wyatt Vinery (right), a Grade II-listed glasshouse that’s undergone extensive repairs to its timber structure and slate roof, original ironwork and windows. Now it’s home to tender plants and citrus trees as well as vines. A short walk from the Hall, the walled garden was originally laid out by Samuel Wyatt during the late 1700s and is home to a spectacular stand of large Victorian glasshouses and a working vegetable garden. Visit holkham.co.uk
Carew Pole AWARD George Plumptre, chief executive of the National Garden Scheme, has been presented with the Carew Pole Award by the RHS, recognising Rupertaward,”byandall“Weimpacthasopeningraisednursingthehasyearsofcontributionsoutstandingtotheworldhorticulture.Underhis12atthehelm,theNGSsignificantlyincreaseddonationsitmakestoandhealthcharities,throughgardenstovisitors,anditraisedawarenessoftheofgardensonhealth.areimmenselyproudofthatGeorgehasachievedthehonourpaidtohimtheRHSthroughthissaidNGSchairmanTyler. ngs.org.uk
BECOME A Friend of Highclere
HOLKHAM walled garden
The Newt in Somerset has opened Villa Ventorum, an authentic reimagining of a 4th century Roman villa discovered on the estate. Seven years in the making, the garden for the villa has been created by an expert team of archaeologists, engineers and craftsman, and Somerset landscape designers Urquhart & Hunt, who won a gold medal and Best in Show for their 2022 Chelsea Flower Show garden. Drawn up with plant historian Maggie Campbell-Culver, their design includes plants grown at that period in Britain. Visit thenewtinsomerset.com for more.
WORDS JACKY PHOTOGRAPHS CLIVE NICHOLS
HOBBS
The
Virtuoso GARDENER
Griselda Kerr’s book may be called The Apprehensive Gardener, to reflect her steep learning curve, but her garden at The Dower House in Derbyshire is the work of a bold and confident plantswoman
Kniphofia rooperi, Aconitum ‘Kelmscott’ and dahlias bring bold, gutsy colour to borders at The Dower House.
M any of you will be familiar with the magnificent, extensive formal gardens of Melbourne Hall in Derbyshire, which proclaims itself ‘the best surviving early 18th-century garden in the manner of Le Notre’. Less well known are the more informal neighbouring gardens of The Dower House, its early 19th-century, Grade II-listed cousin. Here, enjoying broad vistas over the hugely atmospheric 20-acre Melbourne Pool, an intimate and enchanting garden has been created by Griselda and William Kerr, William being the first cousin of Lord Ralph Kerr, who owns Melbourne Hall. The unusually diverse site a ords a wide variety of planting opportunities, with a range of habitats suitable for plants that thrive in full sun, every degree of shade, wet or well-drained soil, making it a real plantswoman’s playground.
Top Griselda Kerr, who wrote The Apprehensive Gardener while caring for the garden here. Middle A golden bloom of Abutilon ‘Canary Bird’. This image Box and berberis edge beds of dahlias and helianthus.
Over the past two decades, Griselda, who initially had limited gardening knowledge, has discovered, researched, planted and nurtured several hundred di erent specimens. “Not all of them have been entirely successful,” she maintains, yet the autumnal spectacle put on by the garden would suggest otherwise. The Dower House garden is a living textbook, an accumulation of acquired knowledge and experience that Griselda has noted down over the years. In 2000, with all their children at boarding school, Griselda returned from Hong Kong to The Dower House while her husband continued working abroad. With the children away, the ‘garden’ – if you could call it that – beckoned: “One-and-ahalf overgrown acres with eight-foot-tall brambles, impenetrable pathways and trees blocking every view!” Griselda recalls. A gradual clearance operation began, and bits of garden started to emerge. Only then did it dawn on Griselda that “I had no idea how to look after any existing plants let alone those I wished to add to the garden.” She duly signed up to three years of gardening school, bolting on additional study courses as needed. She read avidly, soaking up information while finding a wealth of expert advice at the nurseries she frequented: David Austin, Peter Beales, Bluebell Arboretum and Nursery, Mill Cottage Plants, Ashwood Nurseries, Knoll Gardens, Millais and her local nursery at Swarkestone. Always seeking and recording answers to her questions – When might I prune this cotinus? How should I prune my roses? When should I cut down these grasses? How can I encourage this monarda to stay
14 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
“I had no idea how to look after any existing plants, let alone those I wished to add”
The clear yellow Dahlia ‘Glorie van Heemstede’ shines out against the tranquil waters of Melbourne Pool.
Griselda capitalises on the breadth of di erent habitats that are a orded by the aspect and topography of her garden. “The soil is generally neutral, but it is slightly more acidic and heavier in the west,” she explains. It’s consistently moist by the water’s edge but drier on the east where the lesser clay content means “lots of mulching and staking, otherwise plants fall over in the free-draining Millstone Grit soil”. However, she adds, this soil is “lovely to work”. The garden faces due south, with sun-soaked upper terraces, while canopies of mature trees on the western side create shady areas that provide a range of climatic situations coupled with plateaus, steep inclines and water fronts. Griselda has designed, created and tailored planting schemes to suit every aspect of her garden at all times of the year. The warm, sheltered walls of The Dower House itself are elegantly smothered with wisteria and the earlyflowering rose ‘Madame Alfred Carrière’. “I have to snip regularly to maintain views from the bedroom windows!” Griselda exclaims. Soft pink, blue and white flowers linger on into autumn, decorating the front-of-house borders: white Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Purity’, pink Rosa ‘Bonica’, musky-scented nicotiana, and blue Salvia uliginosa, are interspersed with silvery clouds of Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’. The colours darken towards the western front corner of the house. The Wisteria Bed includes deep rose-red Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Rubenza’, dramatic dark torches of Persicaria amplexicaulis ‘Blackfield’ and relatively tender Abutilon ‘Ashford Red’. Its long-lasting blooms perform well into autumn, thriving in their sheltered, sunny, well-drained situation. “In the ground, abutilon seem to get through the winter if protected from strong winds,” Griselda notes sagely in her book. Conditions are similar in the garden’s eastern Long Border, which flanks the Main Lawn. Planting here is successional, deliberately autumnal now, with Above A mound of grey Teucrium fruticans contrasts with scarlet Acer japonicum ‘Aconitifolium’. Right This stone sculpture of a Chinese lion is from Hong Kong. Below Various asters, echinops, sedum and salvias contribute pinks and mauve to the Long Border next to the lawn. Canopies of mature trees on the western side create shady areas that provide a range of climatic situations
16 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 in flower? – she diarised the solutions to multiple plant quandaries, which resulted in what was essentially a practical guide to managing garden plants throughout the year. This compilation eventually became her book, The Apprehensive Gardener. As the book took shape, she added many plants beyond her own soil’s remit, so now it provides information on most of the plants that are likely to be found in a typical English garden.
DAHLIA ‘NUIT D’ETÉ’ A striking cactus-type dahlia with burgundy flowers that are darker at the centre, creating a dramatic display.
A robust, upright variety of helenium with yellow and orange flowers borne between July and September.
DAHLIA ‘BISHOP OF AUCKLAND’ Single flowers with petals of crimson velvet above dark foliage and stems.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 17
Waterlily flowers in clear, luminous yellow from midsummer onwards.
ACONITUM CARMICHAELII ‘KELMSCOTT’ Tall spires of deep purple-blue hooded flowers reach between 1.2 and 1.8m.
HELENIUM ‘WALTRAUT’
DAPHNE ‘ETERNAL FRAGRANCE’ This superb daphne produces its scented blooms from April to October.
COSMOS ‘PURITY’ This popular cosmos brings a welcome freshness to autumn’s rich tones, with its delicate flowers and feathery foliage.
Grow this half-hardy annual climber from seed sown under cover in spring; you may see it sold as lophospermum.
SEASONAL spectacle
At The Dower House, autumn is welcomed by a range of plants chosen for high-impact flowers
ASARINA ‘SNOW WHITE’
CANNA ‘BETHANY’ Tender cannas need winter protection, but this variety’s bold flowers and gold striped leaves are worth the e ort.
DAHLIA ‘GLORIE VAN HEEMSTEDE’
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NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 19
Above Helenium ‘Waltraut’ complementsperfectlygolden Sorbus scalaris Left In the woods, a swing seat made by Duncan Thurlby. Below paniculataHydrangea‘Limelight’, with Helianthus ‘Miss Mellish’ creating a golden glow behind. mixed perennials in warm seasonal tones of pink, terracotta and mauve. Towering pink-tinged plumes of Persicaria polymorpha jostle with fountains of ornamental grass sesleria, sedum Hylotelephium spectabile ‘Brilliant’, Aster x frikartii ‘Mönch,’ Aster ‘Little Carlow’ and heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides. There’s Echinops ritro ‘Veitch’s Blue’, with the silver-leaved weeping pear, Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’, which spills, willow-like, over the water’s edge. “The colours here are restrained and elegant in contrast to the explosive colours on the western side of the garden at this time,” Griselda observes. The western lawn’s Hot Border, still sun-soaked, is damper and almost tropical. It’s a riot of carnivalcoloured planting that is deliberately designed to keep the colour coming until the first frosts. It includes free-flowering sunflowers Helianthus ‘Miss Mellish’ and H. ‘Lemon Queen’, Kniphofia rooperi, Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora ‘Emily McKenzie’ and dahlias such as ‘Glorie van Heemstede’, ‘Nuit d’Eté’ and ‘Bishop of Auckland’.
Hedged in with colourful pink Berberis thunbergii f. atropurpurea ‘Rose Glow’ and traditional clipped box, spears of the sharp blue monk’s hood, Aconitum carmichaelii ‘Kelmscott’, pierce the hotter hues. “Cut down dead flower stalks of aconitum before the leaves turn brown. Always wear gloves; they are so poisonous,” Griselda advises in her book.
Top Helen Sinclair’s bronze statue cartwheels through quirky privet lollipops on the Chelsea Morning Lawn. Above A sculpture of a pig snu es around the base of Euonymus alatus, just beginning to show its fiery autumn colour.
Lawns are a key feature in the garden. “I like to maintain great sweeping areas of green, which retain the views, complement the openness of the pool and help to relax the eye,” Griselda explains.
The Chelsea Morning Lawn, with its cartwheeling bronze statue by Helen Sinclair, runs down a steep slope, pinned by standard privet lollipops. This break in the sloping woodland a ords clear views over on-the-turn tree-tops, across pillars of Irish yew and a huge bobbin of privet. “Evergreen structure brings year-round shape and texture to the garden and is a foil to the looser bursts of autumn colour provided by acers, cercis, cotinus, metasequoia and others,” says Griselda.
The Dower House, Church Square, Melbourne, Derbyshire DE73 8JH. Tel: +44 (0)1332 864756. Bookings by appointment for groups of eight or more can be made any time of the year.
Woodland shade and damper areas of the garden are spangled with flashes of colour from large-leaved Kirengeshoma palmata, toad lily (tricyrtis), and still-in-flower Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ alongside other autumn-peaking Hydrangea paniculata, which flush with colour as they mature. “Hydrangea paniculata has excellent dried flowerheads,” notes Griselda in her book – she leaves them on the plant and prunes in February.
The Glade and Bog Garden areas on the western waterside margins of the garden are the dampest parts, but their south-facing aspect and well-drained raised beds retained by stone walls mean plants that dislike the wet can also cope here. Tropical giant cordylines, phormiums and Stipa gigantea survive cheek-by-jowl with thickets of orange-marmalade Helenium ‘Waltraut’, gunnera, rodgersia, astilbe and other moisture lovers.
20 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
The Dower House garden is an opulent, colourful tapestry of trees, shrubs, foliage and flowering plants, which thrive in the wealth of naturally occurring garden habitats, especially radiant in autumn. Through curiosity, trial and error, dogged determination and an insatiable love of plants, Griselda’s garden glows with the same vitality, enthusiasm and charm as its owner. ■
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At the rear of the house, green oak planters make up a smart, crop-filled potager, sheltered by a low stone wall.
The garden designed by Matthew Wilson at Acomb High House in Northumberland ticked a verdant and potager off the wish list, while its dreamy has made it a of
source
Monet Garden
joy WORDS LOUISE CURLEY PHOTOGRAPHS RICHARD BLOOM Earthly DELIGHTS
lawn
owners’
Owners Naomi Liller and her husband Dave bought the Grade II-listed property in 2014, embarking on a large restoration project. Then, in 2017, with the house complete, they turned their attention to the garden.
Aside from a kitchen garden and a good-sized lawn, Naomi and Dave didn’t have a long list of requirements, so Matthew was given free rein. “What struck me when I first visited was that a sloping section was partly hidden from the rest of the garden by a large cherry tree, a ectionately known by Naomi as ‘the old lady’,” Matthew recalls. “I liked that element of surprise, being able to stumble on this other part of the garden, and I felt this was an important characteristic to retain along with some of the other quirky aspects, such as the house not being square to the garden, which meant nothing would line up, and the walls being a real mix of brick and stone, with some sections rendered or painted and others not. All these elements gave the garden its own character and encouraged me to embrace it rather than to try to impose something on it.”
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As a result, established plants were incorporated into the design where possible, no herbicides were used, and stone already on site was reused with additional stone sourced from a quarry just five miles away.
Matthew transformed the front of the house into a welcoming space, creating a garden where previously there hadn’t been one by adding a 2.5-metre wide border in front of the house. He included a generous strip of stone paving that matches the mellow stone of the building, running the
“It was the architect who had worked on the house who recommended Matthew, and when we met we clicked.”
“When we moved here the garden had an old-fashioned charm, but it had been neglected and was overrun with weeds and rabbits,” Naomi explains. The garden needed new life breathing into it, but they initially struggled to find the right person for the job.
Below Part of the potager, the raised beds are filled with crops including kale, brassicas and strawberries.
“The garden e ectively formed three di erent areas,” explains Matthew. “The front of the house, which consisted of some mature trees and a relentless expanse of gravel right up to the house; the upper level of the back garden, which was a mix of uneven lawn and an allotment-style vegetable patch; and a sloping lower section covered in rosebay willowherb, which led down to the old tennis court that Naomi and Dave had turned into a manège for their horses.”
Naomi and Dave were keen for the garden to be sympathetic and responsive to its setting. They wanted to use materials that were appropriate to the area and to ensure that the garden’s environmental impact was limited – all of which fitted Matthew’s own design ethos.
reating a garden that blends into its rural setting and complements the old house it surrounds while incorporating elements of contemporary design is no easy task. But it’s one that designer Matthew Wilson has carried out with aplomb at Acomb High House near Hexham in Northumberland.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 25 length of the house and separated from the parking area by a low yew hedge. A quintessential cottage garden feel is conjured with Rosa ‘Mortimer Sackler’ scrambling up the wall of the house alongside Japanese anemones, Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’, the delicate golden seedheads of Deschampsia cespitosa and the statuesque stems of hollyhocks, which envelop a space for a table and chairs where Naomi and David can enjoy the evening sun. At the back of the house in the upper section, the existing lawn area was levelled and re-laid, the verdant expanse providing a breathing space for the surrounding borders that are filled with abundant perennial planting, including Naomi’s favourite roses, peonies and daisy flowers. The old allotment patch adjacent to it is now a smart potager garden where raised beds made from Above Early-morning sun filters through the trees and highlights the large reflective pool in the Monet Garden. Right Planting is angled to give a sense that it is cascading down the slope with the rill.
Screening o the billowing planting is the venerable form of a large cherry tree known as ‘the old lady’.
Above left The stepped rill with its copper spouts forms the spine of the Monet Garden. Top right ahollyhocksToweringengulfseatingarea.
Above right Aster x frikartii ‘Mönch’ is much loved by pollinators. green oak brim with perennial herbs and vegetables.
“I try to include somewhere to sit and eat in the edible gardens I design, and here the seating area is surrounded by espaliered apples, which will make the space feel more secluded as they mature. I’ve also planted pears and morello cherries, which are happy with some shade against a low, north-facing wall,” Matthew observes.
The contemporary punch in the overall design comes from the sloping section of the lower part of the garden, now known as the Monet Garden. “I wanted this part of the garden to be bold, and about a month after my first site visit I went to Monet’s garden at Giverny, where I was struck by the narrow paths that were almost completely sublimated by the planting so that you felt enveloped by the plants,” explains Matthew. To tackle the slope, Matthew designed a series of terraced planting areas with retaining walls built from stone already on site. “I knew I’d need some other elements to break up the planting and that’s when I started to think about using water.” A large reflective pool and a stepped rill with elegant copper spouts, form a central spine, from which everything in this section emanates.
Clipped beech ‘beehives’ provide a touch of formality and highlight the route of the rill, forming a green and watery allée leading down to the manège. They also
“The seating area is surrounded by espaliered apples, which will make the space feel more secluded as they mature”
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 27
“It was important to us that the garden should be a haven for wildlife and it’s become just that”
To say that Naomi and Dave are happy would be an understatement. “The garden is an absolute joy and I try to be out there as much as possible,” Naomi enthuses. “I have my breakfast and my lunch outside and then I wander around in the garden in the evening. It was important to us that the garden should be a haven for wildlife and it’s become just that. People have even commented about the birdsong when I’ve been on Zoom. It’s such a delight!” ■
Above Beech clipped into beehives either side of the rill form a smart allée down to the manège. Left Marmalade helenium injects warm tones. Below A late bloom on Lychnis chalcedonica Bottom Pink echinacea and witheupatoriumCalamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’.
28 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 provide a contrast to the exuberant, billowy informality of the grasses and pollinator-friendly perennials, such as Aster x frikartii ‘Mönch’; the towering, fragrant spires of Actaea simplex ‘Pink Spike’; and Eupatorium maculatum ‘Riesenschirm’, all reaching their peak in late summer and early autumn.
To provide additional structure, Matthew also incorporated an existing mature osmanthus and planted a multi-stemmed Prunus x yedoensis for its early almond-scented blossom and attractive autumn colour.
Matthew remains involved with the garden as it evolves. “There’s a herbaceous border we’re still working on, and this spring we sowed an area beneath some trees with shade-tolerant wildflowers – a mix of hedgerow wildflowers and an all-purpose seed mix. It’ll take a few years for these perennial wildflowers to become established, so they have been oversown with a cornflower annual mix to provide some initial colour and to stop weeds taking hold,” Matthew explains.
The grass Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’ stands sentinel, its upright stems gleaming in the golden autumnal light. “It’s a particularly good-value grass because it comes into flower early in June, and continues to look good until it’s cut back in late winter,” says Matthew. He also angled the drifts of plants so that they e ectively form a V-shape towards the bottom of the rill, giving a sense that the plants are cascading down the slope. “I wanted a long season of interest throughout the garden, and I wanted to use plants that were reliable, largely self-supporting and easy to maintain while creating impact. The perennials in the Monet Garden, for example, just need cutting back to above the ground in early Whilespring.”Matthew wanted each of the di erent areas of the garden to have its own dynamic to stimulate a desire to explore, yew has been used to unite the di erent spaces. Those that were already there have been shaped to mirror the beech ‘beehives’, while new ones have been planted, including the fastigiate yews in the front and rear gardens.
+44( 0)1747842214 | info@cavendishstone.com | www.cavendishstone.com Cavendish Stone Ltd
Dressed to IMPRESS
Turning her eye for fashion to The Old Rectory in Northamptonshire, owner Kate Toller has used signature colours to dress beds and borders, rescuing the space from encroaching wilderness to create a stylish, balanced garden of tranquil delights
WORDS GARETH RICHARDS PHOTOGRAPHS ANNA OMIOTEK-TOTT
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 31
Cleome, solanum and bananas in terracotta pots add an exotic late-season flourish to this area of the garden.
32 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
Right Kate Toller owns The Old Rectory with her husband Guy. Far right The potager entrance, flanked by tree peonies and box balls.
Above Lawns slope from the Georgian rectory, which is clad in rambling roses and wisteria.
One such shape is an elegant curl – a great band of Oolitic limestone – that makes a curving sweep up the middle of England. From the Dorset coast up past Bath, Oxford and on to the Lincolnshire Wolds, this delightful stone built many quintessentially English towns and villages and is particularly loved for its warm, honey-coloured tones that make the Cotswolds and their cottages so special. While rural Gloucestershire might be something of a tourist hotspot, happily the thatched villages further up the band remain tranquil and unspoilt.
he geological map of Britain is a beautiful and complex thing. Look closely and you’ll see many interesting shapes and forms that explain a lot about this island’s history and culture.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 33
T
One such village is Sudborough, in the verdant, rolling countryside of Northamptonshire. Nestled into a south-facing slope and overlooked by the 13th-century All Saints church, The Old Rectory is the epitome of rural England.
The garden is a masterclass in balancing exuberant planting with a sense of control and order Left A range of dahlias are still adding vivid colour as ofprogresses.autumnTry‘BishopLeicester’forsimilar.
Happy memories of childhood summers on the Channel Islands at the renowned gardens of La Seigneurie, owned by her great-grandmother, the Dame of Sark, instilled in Kate a life-long love of plants. However, after a 25-year career spent in the fashion industry, it is only in the past few years at The Old Rectory that her gardening passion and knowledge has shifted up a gear. “Our wonderful, Kew-trained gardener Ben Houston taught me a lot,” says Kate. “After he left, I was terrified. But now I’ve ended up taking control and even giving talks!” Certainly her fashionista eye is evident in the use of colour. Purple leaves and flowers are repeated throughout the garden – “it’s such a grounding
Home to Kate and Guy Toller for the past seven years, this late-Georgian rectory is surrounded by a three-acre garden. The house is built from mellow golden local limestone, its graceful proportions and stylish simplicity setting the tone for the garden, which has been lovingly developed during their tenure. From overgrown, overblown beds, borders and encroaching wilderness, the Tollers have created something that is trulyThemagical.garden is a masterclass in balancing exuberant planting with a sense of control and order. At the back of the house, classically tall Georgian windows open onto a sunny stone terrace, backed by generous swirls of Rosa ‘Raubritter’. Two ancient standard white wisterias guard the top of stone steps, which are covered in an abundance of the delightful daisylike Erigeron karvinskianus and lead down to an expansive central lawn. O to the left is Kate’s treasured Rose Circle. Sheltered by a sloping bed of drought-loving Mediterranean-type plants such as alliums, santolina and sedums, it mixes classic English garden combinations of roses and low box hedging with some unexpected elements to give a Moorish feel. Rich blue-purple flowers of standard Lycianthes rantonnetii (formerly Solanum rantonnetii ) speak of sunnier climes, while the green oak gazebo with its pointed copper finial and pyramidal trellis tops echoes the nearby church tower. Spider flowers (Cleome hassleriana ‘Violet Queen’) and Verbena bonariensis provide a dynamic, exotic-looking foil to the roses, and ensure this part of the garden retains interest well into the autumn. The central lawn and its generously sized mixed borders slope gently down to a large pond, filled in summer with pink waterlilies. There’s a seamless transition here to a wilder, more naturalistic style. Grass paths dissect borders not of cultivated soil but meadow grasses studded with choice shrubs and trees such as the paper birch, Betula papyrifera, and Persian ironwood, Parrotia persica
34 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
The potager was designed by Rosemary Verey, with stepover apples marking the formal layout of beds.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 35 colour,” says Kate. The colour scheme of the herbaceous borders is based around Rosa ‘Burgundy Ice’, with purplish cercis, ricinus and physocarpus all contributing, the latter repeated in the wilder areas at the bottom of the garden. Purple-stemmed Tibetan cherry Prunus serrula ‘Branklyn’ is also used throughout: its shiny reddish-purple bark glows in all seasons, complementing the tree’s white spring flowers and yellow autumn colour. However, this isn’t the first time discerning eyes have alighted upon The Old Rectory. Back in the 1980s, renowned garden designer Rosemary Verey was employed to create a potager. With its colourful brick paths, and abundant flowers, trained fruit and low hedges, it is very much of its time. Fantrained peaches line the south wall, while structuregooseberriesstandardgivetovegetable Fan-trained peaches line the south wall, while standard gooseberries give structure to vegetable beds
Above Looking down over the Rose Circle, and its surrounding bed of silvery santolina and richly autumnal sedum. Left A sheltered spot to sit next to the house, with Dahlia ‘Blue Bayou’.
“Gardening here is a challenge,” says Kate. “The enclosed, south-facing nature of the site means that heat can become trapped in the summer –one August we recorded temperatures of over 40°C in the potager!” In the winter, meanwhile, temperatures can plunge and persistent frost pockets form in sheltered hollows. The secret to getting good results is home-made compost – and lots of it. When Kate presented her ideas for a four-bay compost area to husband Guy, he said: “It’s either compost or a holiday.” Su ce to say the passports went un-thumbed that year, and the Tollers now use a mini digger to turn their compost. Alongside the Rose Circle’s lycianthes and cleome, many other tender plants enliven the garden, adding
Rhubarb enjoys the fertile clay soil here and is used to make rhubinis: the Tollers’ signature cocktail
Above Further away from the house the garden becomes wilder, with a pond crossed by a green painted bridge. Left Dahlias flowering their socks o . Below In a sheltered courtyard, Tibouchina urvilleana is the highlight of a group of containers.
beds. Rhubarb enjoys the fertile clay soil and annual lashings of compost and is used to make rhubinis: the Tollers’ signature cocktail. Home-made, secretrecipe rhubarb cordial is mixed with champagne to make the ultimate summer drink.
Tips on creating a stylish and well-designed garden
Kate’s ADVICE
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 37 particular value to late-season displays. As autumn leaves on deciduous trees begin to colour up, the dahlias hit their stride, a particular favourite being Obsidian’.‘Verrone’sItsquilled, inky, burgundy-red petals have darker tints, picking up on the garden’s signature purple palette. Further late-season tender stars include darkleaved ricinus and salvias such as the vivid pink Salvia involucrata on the terrace next to the house. Zesty lemon-coloured argyranthemums add many months of floral interest to the Yellow Garden alongside the churchyard. Meanwhile, in a sheltered west-facing courtyard to the side of the house, the super-saturated purple flowers of Tibouchina urvilleana shine out among pretty displays of plectranthus and pelargoniums. Lively though these plant displays are, the garden is a peaceful place. Red kites soar overhead and church bells count out the hours in a daily ritual that is somehow timeless despite being defined by time. When the garden used to open to the public, visitors were often moved to tears by the serene spectacle unfolding before them. Certainly the garden has helped keep Kate and Guy sane in tough times over the past couple of years. As Audrey Hepburn once said, “to plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow”. ■ Pick a signature colour and repeat it judiciously throughout the garden for cohesion – it can be bark, stems or leaves, as well as flowers. Wind the stems of climbing roses in circles when growing them against a wall: by breaking the plant’s natural vertical habit, you will encourage prolific flowering. Fight box blight by taking the best care possible of the soil around your plants. Use a good quality organic fertiliser and plenty of home-made compost. Crown-lift large shrubs such as osmanthus and Prunus lusitanica
Above Trained fruit clothes the arches that make the potager as decorative as it is productive. Right Inky, spiky Dahlia ‘Verrone’s Obsidian’. Far right Gorgeous Lycianthes rantonnetii, formerly solanum.
You’ll open up lots of space for a range of choice shade-loving plants beneath them. Don’t be afraid to split up large beds and borders by using paths. A curving bark path will sit easily amid planting and makes maintenance much easier. Use large pots as statement pieces. They can be very useful for creating additional garden structure in a similar way to topiary.
WORDS CATRIONA GRAY PHOTOGRAPHS EVA NEMETH A Beating
East Lothian’s Broadwoodside is a bucolic dream of a garden and a beloved family home, developed from dilapidation over 20 years by Robert and Anna Dalrymple, the warm colours of both buildings and planting reflecting the love that has been poured into it HEART
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 39
This page Purple cotinus flanks one of the walls, which is clothed in neatly trained and clipped ivy. Opposite The pond was half-planned as a swimming pool.
40 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 The aviary sits in the chequerboard-e ect upper courtyard and is wittily referenced by the copper bird sculptures.
“When we first saw it, it was derelict with the roofs all tumbling in and weeds growing up through the floors,” recalls Anna, who was familiar with the property long before it came up for sale as she used to take her children to play in the grounds of the tumbledown farmyard.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 41
A half-hour’s drive from Edinburgh, just outside the pretty village of Gi ord, lies a remarkable garden, built around a historic farm steading. It occupies a particularly bucolic spot, located at the end of a long track and bordered to the east by beech woods, which in autumn turn glorious shades of yellow, orange and russet. These rich colours are echoed in the buildings themselves – a courtyard of old converted outbuildings built from weathered stone and mellow pantiles, with windows and gates painted in traditional hues of red iron oxide and deep forest green, and render enlivened by cheerful ochre limewash. Even on the chilliest of autumn days, the place seems to exude warmth, which comes both from the abundant planting and the many signs that it’s a well-loved family home. An uninformed visitor would be forgiven for thinking that Broadwoodside has been cultivated for generations: a long-established garden that’s evolved with the passing of time. Yet it was started from scratch just over 20 years ago by the current owners, Robert and Anna Dalrymple.
“It was love at first sight, really.”
orchard, which positively brims with apples each autumn, and a long avenue of old lime trees. At the other end, as you approach the property, there’s a hornbeam avenue, a vegetable and cutting garden and a dark rectangular pond that looks as if it might be a swimming pool, but isn’t. “The idea was that if global warming ever came to Scotland it could be turned into a swimming pool – but it’s currently only about three foot deep!” notes Anna, with a laugh. While much has been written about the design and creation of the garden, the evolution of the space over the past two decades to suit the changing needs of the Dalrymples is every bit as fascinating. When they arrived, their four children were aged between six and 16, and a major reason for the move was to have somewhere with enough land for their ponies. For the first 15 years, Broadwoodside was a busy family home with ponies jumping over garden walls, industrial quantities of potatoes growing in the vegetable patch and plenty of noise and bustle. During that time the garden gradually took shape and matured, while the couple added plenty of original touches. These range from a monumental early Victorian portico that was reinstalled in a field a short distance from the house, to a number of home-made sculptures that reveal the Dalrymples’ sense of fun – a mound of stone and glass spheres entitled A Load of Balls being a prime example.
Part of the attraction was the opportunity to create a garden from scratch, which Robert and Anna embarked on immediately with the help of their gardener, Guy Donaldson, who lives on site and has been with them right from the start. Drawing inspiration largely from books – aptly so, since Robert is a book designer – they laid out the structure of the garden. At the heart of it lie two courtyards: the upper courtyard features an aviary and is laid out as a chequerboard of beds, while the lower one is mostly lawn, divided into quadrants with thetoflagstones.reclaimedBehindthecourtyards,thenorth-westofproperty,isthe
“In a sense it’s rather horrifying to think that it’s been over 20 years since we bought it, but in another sense it’s also rather quick,” says Robert. “Twenty years takes a lot of your life, but it shows that it doesn’t take forever to achieve a mature garden. Recently, we’ve done a bit of tweaking and replanting of things that haven’t worked. There are some plants that just won’t grow here – I’m always very envious of gardens down south that have masses of bearded irises, for instance.”Interestingly, the courtyard garden has a slightly milder climate than the surrounding area, about two degrees warmer, and this has enabled the Dalrymples to grow a wider range of plants than would otherwise be possible, although their ethos is Below Bowed by the weight of its cargo of fruit, a golden crab apple epitomises the bountiful autumn atmosphere.
42 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 Book designer Robert has an eye for symmetry and perspective, which is much in evidence in this neat hornbeam avenue.
Top The cooler climate means the Dalrymples can’t grow everything, so a greenhouse and coldframe are essentials. Above A pastel cosmos; ‘Sonata Pink’ is similar. Right Fun touches abound fromincludingthroughout,thisgatemadegardenforks.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 43 very much to focus on varieties that will flourish without too much e ort. In autumn, some of their favourites are Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’, blue globe thistles and Michaelmas daisies, as well as rudbeckia and autumn-flowering cyclamen.
Then, in late September 2020, another daughter got married – this time the occasion was very di erent, since due to government restrictions they were limited to just 20 guests. However, the gardens
“In the past few years, as the garden has become more mature, I’ve noticed that it’s the trees that have come to the fore during the autumn months,” says Anna. “I love looking out of the window at the maples in the courtyard: they turn the most beautiful shades of gold and red.” Robert has his own favourite: “My desert island plant would be the royal ferns,” he enthuses. “They look wonderful in the autumn, they’re fabulous when they unfurl in the spring and they look great all summer. And they never keel over in the wind!” The gardens have also turned out to be the perfect wedding venue – two of their daughters have had autumn weddings at Broadwoodside. “Our elder daughter got married about seven years ago and we had two marquees in the courtyard,” says Anna. “It was at the end of October – just on the equinox night when the clocks changed. It was very atmospheric.”
Top right The warm ochre and red tones used on the buildings are echoed by the planting. Above Ducks and chickens forage freely, o ering a natural source of pest control. Right Smart glass cloches sit snugly in a bed of brassicas in the vegetable garden.
Broadwoodside, Gi ord, East Lothian EH41 4JQ. Opens for Scotland’s Gardens Scheme and by appointment, Monday to Friday, all year round. See scotlandsgardens.org and broadwoodside.co.uk
Top left A cheerfully painted gate, at the head of one of many vistas.
44 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 proved to be as magical a setting for a small wedding as for a large one. “We had tremendous flower displays on a huge scale – great limbs of prunus and crab apple,” Robert recalls. “They got married at the monument and walked down the lime avenue afterwards to the house, where we had the reception in and around the courtyard.”
In fact, Broadwoodside was recently more lively than ever, since the Dalrymples’ grown-up children returned at the start of the pandemic with their own families in tow. “There was a point, about six or seven years ago, when we wondered if perhaps we were mad to be living in such a huge place because no one was going to be around, but then we were back where we started, with small children running about again,” says Anna. “Everyone came back for a year or so with all the lockdowns, and the gardens really came into their own during this time.” A previously unused room was converted into a home o ce and the many di erent areas of the garden were pressed into use, since the entire family was suddenly living and working under one roof. It had the happy side-e ect of even more people being around to help out in the garden, and the recent programme of replanting means that Broadwoodside continues to evolve. Above all, it remains a place that is a home to this visionary couple who have loved it since it was a romantic wilderness and, over the past two decades, have enhanced and developed its beauty, turning it into a place that will be cherished by many generations to come. ■
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46 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 Thanks to Giles Coode-Adams’ horticultural expertise and his wife Sonia’s painterly eye, a garden of exquisite form and rare botanical treasures has been developed over 40 years at 16th-century Feeringbury Manor in Essex WORDS WIDGET FINN PHOTOGRAPHS ANNA OMIOTEK-TOTT Fine ARTS
This image A curving path leads around the pond, past beds of lush ferns and primulas. Opposite Yew hedges intriguingly screen the garden’s rooms.
“Perhaps we should have worked out our ideas on paper and measured it all up at the start,” suggests Sonia, a former garden designer. “But while we were weeding a bed one day, we thought that maybe a hedge would look nice here, and that’s how the garden grew – organically.”
48 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
W hen Sonia and Giles Coode-Adams moved to 15th-century Feeringbury Manor in 1978, the garden, according to Sonia, was a jungle: “There was nothing but brambles and rubbish and a rose bed at the top of the garden full of ground elder.” Undaunted, they set about creating a garden for all seasons, with jewel-like plantings of bulbs in spring, bold herbaceous summer beds and an arboretum that comes into its own in autumn.
The ten-acre site is mainly south facing and slopes down to the River Blackwater with views of fields beyond. Two ponds at di erent levels are connected by a stream that flows over a Victorian waterwheel and then into the river. The Coode-Adams aimed to create strong structures with yew and box hedges and the occasional wall dividing it all into separate rooms. The main part of the garden has a semicircular border backed by a mature hedge. “The border flourishes,” explains Giles, “because when we planted it I sunk in a two-and-a-half-foot barrier of corrugated iron to prevent the yew roots from invading the bed. I was younger and stronger then!”
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 49 we love,” says Sonia. “In autumn we have lots of Michaelmas daisies, dahlias, and salvias that keep on going till the frosts.” Michaelmas daisies are coming back into fashion again now, but Sonia’s have been established for many years. “We found Aster novae-angliae (now Symphyotrichum) are resistant to mildew. They’re very promiscuous and self-seed all over the place, so the varieties have got completely mixed up, but our favourites include ‘Andenken an Alma Pötschke’ and ‘Harrington’s Pink’. The overall e ect is a beautiful soft mauve.” Dahlias provide a burst of colour, the favourites being scarlet ‘Apache’, mauve ‘Blue Boy’ and orange ‘Ludwig Helfert’. Sonia’s advice for the autumn garden is to introduce some structure. “We’ve Above left Ferns and irises thrive in the damp margins of the garden’s tranquil pond. Top right A stretch of lilac and mauve asters fill this autumnal border with colourful flowers. Above Sonia and Giles Coode-Adams. Opposite A pink waterlily dahlia; try ‘Brackenridge Ballerina’ for similar. The couple are united in the e ect they seek from the garden. “We like to mass plants together,” says Giles, “so that you have to look closely to discover the surprises.” They also have a practical division of interests – Sonia is mainly in charge of the herbaceous areas, while Giles looks after “the woody bits”. His modesty belies his expertise as a member of the International Dendrology Society, and a fellow of the Linnean Society. He is also a former president of the Royal Horticultural Society and used to lead the Foundation at Kew Gardens.
Giles’s o cial duties involved visits to many gardens that provided ideas and inspiration, as well as opportunities to acquire a wide range of plants. “But, on the whole, it’s the familiar favourites that
The star of the autumn show at Feeringbury Manor is undoubtedly the arboretum: an acre o n olour ro berries and foliage
50 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 placed box balls on the corner of the large border, and planted shrubs to provide a background.
Myrtle flowers well into autumn, and Heptacodium miconioides is brilliant, though not well known. It looks very exotic but is hardy, with fragrant white flowers from the end of September and a calyx that turns red-orange.” She warns that it can grow to 12 feet, but it is easily pruned to fit a smallish garden. Strobilanthes, a curious, hairy-leaved perennial with blue flowers, contrasts well with the star of the herbaceous border: pale yellow daisy-flowered Coreopsis verticillata, which spreads everywhere and was a favourite of Christopher Lloyd. Sonia was a close friend of the eminent plantsman, and many of her herbaceous plants are from Great Dixter where she was a frequent visitor when he was alive. With two such knowledgeable gardeners in attendance there are bound to be some unusual treasures among the familiar plants. Giles recommends hardy orange tree relative Poncirus trifoliata: “It’s not grown widely, but it should be better known for autumn interest as well as spring. It has white flowers in March, then very decorative small oranges – which aren’t edible – in October. A warning: it’s very prickly and quite slow growing, but if it doesn’t work take it out!” Roses abound and include Rosa mutabilis, ‘Cécile Brünner’ and hybrid musk roses, which go on blooming into the autumn. Climbers that scramble into shrubs and trees are popular with the CoodeAdams, and include Clematis montana which scales a yew here. Ampelopsis brevipedunculata, meanwhile, produces ornamental, bright blue, green and purple berries all at once in autumn and is a rare trophy that Giles grew from seed brought back from the Japanese island of Hokkaido.Shrubs light up the garden, including Cotinus ‘Grace’, the vivid scarlet smoke bush, and a range of euonymus, including Euonymus alatus and E. europaeus ‘Red Cascade’. But the star of the autumn show at Feeringbury Manor is Top Persicaria, purple asters and miscanthus supply autumnal interest to this mixed border. Left Russet apples ripen on one of the CoodeAdams’ apple trees. Far left A froth of pale mauve aster flowers; ericoidesSymphyotrichum ‘Rosy Veil’ will give a similar e ect.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 51 Pink Nerine bowdenii peep out from behind a clipped yew hedge; the manor house dates from the 15th century.
Top Pastel-coloured asters complement the trees’ golden autumnal foliage. Above Pale yellow Coreopsis verticillata with purple Strobilanthes wallichii, backed by bamboo.
undoubtedly the arboretum: an acre of fizzing colour from berries and foliage. Giles grew many of these trees from seed collected on his plant-hunting expeditions over the past 20 years. Euonymus is his special interest, although he also has rare specimens from other genera. Acer griseum, the paperbark maple, provides dramatic orange colour and dark stems. Feeringbury’s specimen received the ultimate accolade from Roy Lancaster who said that it was the best example he’d ever seen. Giles’s recommendations for less ambitious trees for autumn colour in a small garden include Sorbus commixta, Malus x robusta ‘Sentinel’ and Acer rubrum
Trachelospermum jasminoides and T. asiatica, buddleja and honeysuckles greet you, and in autumn and winter the fragrance of sarcococca and Lonicera purpusii fills the air. Throughout the garden, complementing the strong lines of hedge and wall, are a series of dramatic galvanised steel sculptures by Sonia and Giles’s son Ben. His bold gate leading from the garden to the compost heap has a religious theme. A domed arch marks the central point of two vistas, and a garden seat invites visitors to pause and contemplate the peaceful views. Artistic talent runs in the family. Sonia took up painting again inspired by a chance visit to an art-supply shop in Paris, and she recently held an exhibition of 45 pictures of the garden, which she
52 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
The Coode-Adams have planted strongly perfumed flowers at the entrance to the main part of the garden. During the summer months
had painted during lockdown. These beautiful surroundings, created over 40 years, are a constant source of artistic inspiration to the couple – Sonia claims that she continually finds subjects in the garden to paint, while Giles says “I look at the garden di erently as a result of Sonia’s paintings.”
When Giles became president of the RHS in 2009 his ambition was “to make the RHS more accessible to everyone”. True to this aim, he and Sonia enjoy sharing the beauty and peace of their lovely garden with others by opening it throughout the summer in aid of the National Garden Scheme. ■ Feeringbury Manor, Coggeshall Road, Feering, Essex CO5 9RB. Opens in 2022 in aid of the National Garden Scheme on Thursdays and Fridays only until 14 October. The garden also welcomes groups of 1-20 visitors, by arrangement, all year round. Tel: +44 (0)1376 561946; ngs.org.uk Top Laden with its glossy scarlet fruit, Malus ‘Sentinel’ makes a bountiful focal point. Above The arch was made by Giles and Sonia’s son Ben. Left Orange berries emerge from magenta cases on Euonymus ‘Red Cascade’. Sonia claims she ont nually nds su e ts n the arden to a nt, while Giles says “I look at the arden d erently as a result o on a s a nt n s
This image Golden Acer cappadocicum and Ulmus americana ‘Princeton’, seen over fiery Acer japonicum and A. palmatum Opposite A late bloom on a mophead hydrangea.
“My grandfather introduced many new plants brought back from China in the early 1900s by the plant hunter Ernest Wilson,” explains Lawrence Banks who, together with his wife Elizabeth, has cared for the 70-acre garden and arboretum since 1988. Many of these introductions have since grown into the towering rhododendrons and exotic trees that now fill the secluded woodland valleys, creating scenes that are, says Lawrence, more reminiscent of the Himalayas than the Welsh Marches. Today, the gardens host one of the country’s finest privately owned collections of rare plants.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 55 M
agnificent trees lend such great distinction to a landscape and, thanks to five generations of the Banks family, the gardens at Hergest Croft are an incomparable treasure trove of rare specimens planted since Victorian times.
Among them, a giant weeping beech looms within a stone’s throw of the Arts & Crafts house, while nearby, a pair of Ginkgo biloba trees stand ramrod straight. At the end of the The garden and arboretum at Hergest Croft in the Welsh Marches host a collection of unusual trees, some dating back to the glory days of the Victorian plant hunters, and some more recently introduced NICOLA STOCKEN
HIMALAYANHOMAGE
WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHS
Over the past three decades, Lawrence and his wife Elizabeth, a renowned landscape architect, have added to the collection with rare mountain ashes such as Sorbus splendens, a new species introduced into cultivation in 1995. “In the early 1980s, plant hunters started bringing back some really unusual plants from China,” Lawrence recalls. “Vietnam was opening up and there were some re-introductions from the Himalayas; it was all hugely exciting.”
One of their first introductions was Acer sieboldianum, a rare, small, slow-growing specimen that turns the most glorious shade of crimson in Above The Arts & Crafts house overlooks the Slate Garden with a slate fir cone by Joe Smith. Left Elizabeth and Lawrence Banks with their working spaniels Havoc and Honey. Below right Sorbus x vertesensis, a rare rowan with white berries. Below left Vivid late colour from the flowers of Hesperantha coccinea
lawn stands a superb Acer palmatum ‘Sangokaku’ that was planted in 1913 by William Hartland Banks who built the house. The arboretum is but a short stroll away and is home to many exotic trees such as a Davidia involucrata, which heralds spring with its white, handkerchief flowers. “These trees have been beautifully planted by people who foresaw what they would look like a century later,” says Lawrence, indicating an avenue of blue cedars in the Azalea Garden. “The cedars were planted to alternate with unusual conifers, most of which have survived.”
Above The gravel path to the summerhouse is edged with sedum and Japanese anemones.
Right leavesGolden-orangeof shirasawanumAcer ‘Aureum’ contrast with a huge Fagus sylvatica ‘Pendula’. autumn. It is one of many acers that, grouped as clumps and interspersed with magnolia, sorbus and birches, was planted near the entrance. “We’ve planted the trees pretty close together – some might say too close – but we thought more would die. And, looking at the arboretum today, I’m totally unrepentant,” says Lawrence. Among the rarest and most pleasing are the fruiting mountain ash, Sorbus henryi ‘Emei Shan’, and Betula utilis subsp. albosinensis ‘Bowling Green’, a Chinese red birch with honey-coloured peeling bark. “It was a graft from a tree originally grown from seed collected by Ernest Wilson,” Lawrence notes. Many trees are pruned in late summer to lift the canopy. “Some people think trees should be left au naturel, but our trees have always been regularly pruned,” says Lawrence. “It’s essential to let in light and encourage smaller rarities to grow beneath, but you must be careful not to a ect the way in which trees naturally blend together.” There is a mixture of broad-leaved trees and conifers here, which is unusual, creating strong contrasts of foliage texture.
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 57
No new tree is introduced without considerable forethought, not only to ensure the best position for it to flourish – many have been introduced from wild seed – but also with an eye to the future. “First we consider what is known about each specimen: the provenance and information from the expedition is significant,” points out Elizabeth. “Then we can work out the best place in the garden, taking into “Our trees have always been regularly pruned. It’s essential to let in light and encourage smaller rarities to grow beneath”
“I don’t want the birches looking regimented like soldiers. The garden should flow naturally, rather than standing to attention”
Above A purple-leaved witch hazel stands next to the pond; in the distance, an old oak. Left Purple flowers of Liriope muscari Far left Head gardener Stephen Lloyd with his one of his favourite plants, rare Neoshirakia japonica, which he grew from seed.
58 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 account its ultimate size and shape. It usually takes quite a time!” Even the most particular of plants have thrived on the neutral shale in a temperate climate with cool summers and warm winters, sheltered from north and westerly winds by Hergest Ridge and mature woodland. “The conditions are ideal for growing an extraordinary range of plants,” Elizabeth observes.
To the south of the estate meanders the River Arrow, and nearby is a fortified manor house dating from 1267 that is allegedly haunted by a great black hound believed to have inspired Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles
Head gardener Stephen Lloyd has continued the tradition of cultivating rare species from around the world. “I left school on a Friday, started working
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 59 here on the following Monday and have now been here for 40 years,” says Stephen. He has received seeds collected in various far-flung places by contemporary plant hunters such as Roy Lancaster, Chris Chadwell and Bleddyn and Sue WynnJones. “It’s alright for me in my little potting shed, propagating away, but then you look at the seed packet, and it says: ‘China, 2,000 feet up’, and you realise that whoever collected this seed was probably hanging o the side of a remote mountain!”
A selection of Hergest Croft’s choice maples, ideal for providing fine autumn colour
Siebold’s maple has velvety mid-green foliage that turns gold, pink and then crimson.
Stephen’s challenges lie in cultivating plants that are more at home in the world’s remoter places, but his meticulous records and hands-on approach have assured many successes, especially in adding to the National Collections of Birches, Zelkovas and Maples. “So much of horticulture nowadays is commercial, but here I can be very personal, continually learning from the latest arrivals,” he explains. A particular favourite is the rare Neoshirakia japonica that he grew from seed in the 1980s: today he is able to shelter beneath its crimson canopy. “I have little idea how a computer works,” he admits cheerfully, “but then all I need to be happy is my potting shed, plants and the gardens.”
The false Siebold’s maple bears sharply toothed, lobed leaves that take on fiery hues.
SIEBOLDIANUMACER
ACER PALMATUM VAR. MATSUMURAE This Japanese maple has green foliage that turns to lovely shades of gold.
PSEUDOSIEBOLDIANUMACER
ACER MICRANTHUM
The small-leaved maple has green foliage that turns orange, gold and red, with interesting bark as it ages.
Seasonal FIREWORKS
ACER PALMATUM ‘GINKO-SAN’ A small Japanese maple that o ers bright pink foliage in spring and autumn.
ACER CISSIFOLIUM The ivy-leaved maple has small, dark green, serratededged leaves that take on red and gold hues in autumn.
Throughout the arboretum there are small glades of maples or birches, and one of Stephen’s favourites is Betula utilis subsp. albosinensis, a beautiful birch with peeling bark and an elegant trunk. “I like to plant birches in groups – they show themselves o best in a glade,” he adds. Nor are they pruned. “I don’t want them looking regimented like soldiers: the garden should flow naturally, rather than standing to attention.” In one glade stands Betula ‘Hergest’, a lovely mature specimen with an upright bronze trunk that originated from a chance seedling. With its blend of glades – even in the parkland, there are spinneys of mature limes, chestnut, acers, beeches, oaks and ash – and single specimens, the arboretum flows comfortably from one area to the next, and it is easy to overlook the many rarities that flourish in between, such as a wonderful Eucryphia x intermedia ‘Rostrevor’ smothered in delicate white flowers, and Lindera obtusiloba, a “bonny small tree” with glossy leaves and red berries, which took ten years to propagate. Maturing plants soon become old friends, especially in the 35-year-old Maple Grove where there are more introductions from the wild than anywhere else in the garden. “You can’t help but develop a bond with the plants you grow, especially when they’re di cult,” says Stephen. The Maple Grove is at the bottom of the hill, and the planting has gradually spread upwards. The most recent plantings include berried plants such as stewartia, cotoneaster, photinia and sorbus, set against the view of the Herefordshire plain and Malvern Hills. The trees create a sense of permanence throughout the garden, sometimes being the centre of attention,
“During the pandemic, the beauty of gardens has played such an important role by providing spiritual solace”
Hergest Croft Gardens, Ridgebourne Road, Kington, Herefordshire HR5 3EG. Open until 30 October 2022, 11.30am to 5pm. hergest.co.uk
Above The frost-dusted kitchen garden features vegetable beds and step-over apples. Right An abundant crop of eating apples fills a wooden trug. Below A magnificent and stately specimen of Acer ‘Sango-kaku’, the coral-bark maple.
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60 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 and at others providing a backdrop to roses, herbaceous borders, a formal parterre, rockery and Azalea Garden where, come spring, the blue cedar avenue is enlivened by a spectacular display of da odils followed by azaleas. Most recently, Lawrence and Elizabeth have restored a traditional kitchen garden, including an apple avenue of gnarled old trees that was probably planted around 1900 by Lawrence’sOverseeinggreat-grandmother.thegardens’development from one century into the next, the couple have ensured real cohesion by maintaining the continuity of new introductions, mostly from eastern Asia, and from China in particular. “We have kept to the style of planting, but the palette has considerably expanded,” they note. As a former president of the RHS, Elizabeth is particularly keen to inspire a new generation of gardeners. “I’d like to promote the role of gardening as widely as possible, from prisons where it reduces violence, to communities in which it brings people together,” she says. “And, of course, during the pandemic, the beauty of gardens has played such an important role by providing spiritual solace.”
Untitled-39 1 19/07/2022 19:36
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Grey-green leaves and steely flowerheads in purplish-blue mark Panicum ‘Dallas Blues’ out from the crowd. PLANT FOCUS inSplendourtheGrass At the Sussex Prairie Garden, Paul and Pauline McBride cultivate a range of grasses, but panicum are among the easiest and the most beautiful WORDS CLARE FOGGETT PHOTOGRAPHS DIANNA JAZWINSKI NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 63
O
“Panicum are easy and lovely,” confi rms Paul. “They’re a really good entry-level grass.” Also, autumn is defi nitely the best time of year to see these grasses growing and make your choice, for it’s when many varieties not only bear their ethereal flowers, but also develop rich autumnal leaf colour as an added bonus.
Take, for example, popular Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’, widely considered to be one of the best for autumn colour. It’s a frothy mound of green leaves for much of the year, but in late summer the leaves develop tints of dark red until they turn a deep claret colour, while the sprays of tiny flowers develop a reddish hue, too. At 90cm to 1.2m tall, it’s a lovely partner for perennials such as helenium.
ne of the best things about grasses is the lightness they bring to a planting scheme – an airy, breezy, swishy quality that works so well with mounds of late summer- and early autumn-flowering perennials. Out of all the grasses you can plant to obtain this e ect, panicum is one of the lightest and airiest of all.
P. virgatum varieties ‘Rehbraun’ and ‘Squaw’ have similar autumn appeal. Forming clumps of green, up to 1.2m and 1.5m tall respectively, their leaves turn warm shades of red, crimson and buttery gold to give a lovely autumnal glow. “‘Rehbraun’ is one of my particular favourites,” a rms Paul. “It’s much more upright than some of the others; if it falls down after heavy rain, it stands back up again.” Its frothy flowerheads give the borders a “dreamy look”, he adds, and it’s this feature of panicum that Pauline so admires. “Panicum are fabulous for o ering autumn colour, but it’s the textural richness they bring that I enjoy,” she explains. “I love the way these grasses bring soft focus to the garden in the early morning, when their seedheads are covered in dew.” Most of the panicum for sale here are cultivars of Panicum virgatum, a North American species found on prairies, particularly in the Midwest. It’s also used as part of soil conservation schemes in the US, its fibrous roots helping to knit soil together and its top growth preventing the soil’s erosion by wind and rain. It’s grown as a forage crop for cattle and is even cultivated as a renewable biofuel, so it has plenty more strings to its bow besides gardens, although its ease of growth makes it ideal for those
64 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
PLANT FOCUS
For proof of panicum’s many virtues, head to Sussex Prairie Garden, near Henfield in West Sussex, where Paul and Pauline McBride grow a collection of di erent cultivars in the eight acres of naturalistic prairie garden they’ve created on Pauline’s family farm.
These versatile grasses range in size, the smallest coming in at under one metre, the largest reaching two metres tall. But even at its tallest, panicum still manages to look delicate thanks to its slender leaves and feathery, transparent flowers. Its weightless appearance also makes it easy to integrate into planting, helping it weave e ortlessly with any number of potential bedfellows.
Above Annual Panicum ‘Frosted Explosion’, here adorned with dewdrops alongside rudbeckia, is also a lovely cut flower.
Top left ‘Hänse Herms’ develops red and gold tints in autumn.
Look out for other P. virgatum varieties such as ‘Hänse Herms’, another of Pauline and Paul’s picks for autumn colour: a glowing gold with reddishpurple tints. Books say it will reach 90cm to 1.2m tall, but on Sussex Prairies’ fertile clay soil it often grows to 1.5m. ‘Dallas Blues’ is another tall variety, reaching 1.4m and forming a clump of glaucous blue-green stems and leaves that turn gold in autumn. “It’s lovely with white Anemone x hybrida
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 65 of us mainly interested in its ornamental side. A deciduous perennial grass, it’s hardy in the UK, its leaves drying to a biscuit colour as winter progresses. In around February or March, cut the dead stems and leaves back to make way for the new season’s growth.
Top right Dainty flowers of Panicum ‘Squaw’. Above ‘Rehbraun’ is Paul’s favourite, with its frothy flowers and good autumn colour. Left Lofty ‘Cloud Nine’ will reach around 2m.
When it comes to soil, panicum don’t need anything special. Ours grow in ordinary garden soil –heavy clay improved with mulch and green waste – and they’re really happy. I suspect they probably wouldn’t grow quite as big on very sandy soil.
Panicum prefer sun but you can get away with growing them in partial shade. At Le Jardin Plume in Normandy, there’s an acre of them growing under apple trees, which looks amazing. They’re really easy and we’ve never seen a pest or disease on them. They’re also well-behaved and don’t self-seed, apart from the annual ones.
PLANT FOCUS
Perfect Panicum Paul and Pauline McBride share their experience of cultivating this easygoing grass GROWING ADVICE
In the new year, normally around February or March, cut back or rake up all the old growth. You can use secateurs or just snap o the stems in your hands. But do leave the tidying up until the new year since the seedheads are a good source of food for wild birds. They also o er lovely structure in frost or mist, while the stems o er a wildlife habitat over winter. Sow annual panicum from February to May in a greenhouse or on a windowsill indoors. Sow thinly, just covering the seed, and transplant small clumps into individual pots to grow on, planting out after the frosts.
66 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER
‘Honorine2022 Jobert’,” says Pauline. ‘Heavy Metal’ is a similar steely blue at 1.5m tall. “The flowers have red anthers so you get this rich haze,” notes Paul. ‘Northwind’Green-leavedmakes a tall, narrow clump up to 1.8m and turns yellow-orange in autumn. ‘Cloud Nine’ is even taller at 2m. “It’s a big one, but vaseshaped, which gives it a strong, formal, architectural look. It’s a nice plant to repeat for a feeling of continuity,” suggests Paul. “We’ve got it in a big group with white thalictrum.” All of these cultivars hold Awards of Garden Merit from the RHS, proving their worth in the garden, but they’re equally good as cut flowers. “Their flowers are great for adding into bouquets,” agrees Pauline. The half-hardy annual, Panicum elegans ‘Frosted Explosion’ is a particular favourite with florists. “Its flowers look like fibre optic lamps from the 1970s, and give a frothy look to a bouquet,” Pauline says. “It does seed around, but its seedlings are easy to hoe out where they’re not wanted.” ■ Sussex Prairie Garden, Morlands Farm, Wheatsheaf Road, Henfield, West Sussex BN5 9AT. Open Wednesday to Sunday until 16 October 2022. Tel: +44 (0)1273 495902; sussexprairies.co.uk Above Panicum ‘Shenandoah’ is known for the deep winered hue its leaves and flowers develop. Above right ‘Heavy Metal’ can reach five feet tall, but its airy, lightweight appearance means it never imposes.
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68 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
Small but striking Crocus ‘Orange Monarch’ is used in Arthur Parkinson’s colourful container scheme on page 72. BULBS Cocktail Hour Experts Angel Collins, Arthur Parkinson and Lady Ursula Cholmeley present their signature recipes for mixing up bulbs in borders, containers and meadows in autumn, to create delectably sophisticated combinations the following spring NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 69 WORDS HAMBLYVIVIENNE IMAGE NICHOLSCLIVE
Beds & Borders
Garden designer Angel Collins is adept at creating schemes with interest. Here she suggests bulbs for a special spring-flowering
sustained
border display BejwelledAngel’s Border Bulb quantities for a 12m x 3m border 15 Fritillaria imperialis 100 Narcissus ‘Geranium’ 50 Narcissus ‘Sentinel’ 50 Narcissus ‘Barrett 100Browning’Tulip‘Little Beauty’ 100 Tulip ‘Brown Sugar’ 200 Tulip ‘Merlot’ 100 Tulip ‘Request’ 250 Tulip ‘Chato’ 150 Tulip ‘Black Hero’ 150 Tulip ‘Queen of Night’ 150 Tulip ‘Menton’ “ Narcissus ‘Sentinel’ Tulip ‘Merlot’ Tulip ‘Little Beauty’ Narcissus ‘Barrett Browning’ Tulip ‘Queen of Night’ Fritillaria imperialis
70 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 BULBS A large part of the joy of growing bulbs is the anticipation. You can have at least three weeks of foliage when you don’t mind that they’re not flowering yet,” says Angel. In borders, aim for variation in shape and texture as well as colour. With this in mind, she suggests crown imperials (Fritillaria imperialis) for drama, and tulips in di erent hues for a border full of jewel colours from March to May. Think also about perennial foliage that will be emerging at the same time as the spring bulbs and plant for contrast.
Angel proposes Heuchera ‘Lime Rickey’, Thalictrum rochebrunianum, Euphorbia amygdaloides ‘Purpurea’ and Geum ‘Mai Tai’ as good spring companions. Put all the bulbs apart from the crown imperials into a wheelbarrow. Add a small jar of hot chilli powder, coating each bulb with it: this will help deter squirrels. “Divide the bulbs into 14 groups and weave the groups through the border, or walk along the border throwing them in all the way along and then plant them where they land,” Angel advises. Dot the crown imperials separately throughout the border for impact. Lift and dry o the tulips once they have flowered and replace them with annuals. Replant the bulbs in a meadow, if you have one, for flowering the following year. “If you want to leave tulip bulbs in the border, try to plant the defi nite returners, such as ‘Rem’s Favourite’, ‘Menton’, and ‘Queen of Night’,” says Angel.
For a smaller 5m x 3m bed in shades of pink, use 450 tulips, planting 90 each of the varieties ‘China Town’, ‘China Pink’, ‘Mistress Grey’, ‘Merlot’ and ‘Spring Green’. Tel: +44 (0)7876 592440; angelacollins.co.uk; @angelcollinsgardens
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 71 IMAGES SHUTTERSTOCKNICHOLS;CLIVE Tulip ‘Brown Sugar’
72 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 BULBS D
Pots & Containers
SOURCESGOOD
Gardener and designer Arthur Parkinson uses his favourite container, the dolly tub, to create a gorgeous layered confection of flowers from February to May
For each dolly tub, or similar-sized container of around 50cm tall and 40cm across, Arthur recommends using 40 tulips, 15-30 hyacinths, 50 crocuses and 50 irises, which will flower from February into late May. Scale the numbers down if you’re using smaller pots, or scale up for a large trough or bath. A dolly tub should hold three planting layers; shallow containers may accommodate only two. Add drainage to the bottom of the dolly tub and then fi ll it a third full with peat-free compost. Lay down the tulips fi rst, then add a 10cm deep layer of compost. Next add the hyacinths and cover with another 10cm layer of compost. Irises and crocus can be planted together, around 10cm below the soil’s surface – just ensure none of the bulbs touch one another. Deadhead as the season progresses, but remove the hyacinth bulbs altogether after flowering to make room for the tulips.
olly tubs, the galvanised Victorian wash tubs now widely used as containers, make a striking focal point and will take 100 to 200 bulbs each. Arthur plants his tubs up using the ‘lasagne’ technique. For this, he positions lateflowering bulbs at the bottom of the container and early-flowering bulbs on top. “All my pots are planted up like this, with three layers of di erent bulbs. It’s a really e cient method of getting lots of di erent bulbs into your garden,” he explains.
Nkuku Small to medium pots, mainly in terracotta and brass. Tel: +44 (0)333 2400155; nkuku.com Violet Grey A handpicked collection of rare antique pots and planters in the French style. Tel: +44 (0)1392 348318; violetgrey.co.uk Whichford Traditional terracotta planters that are handmade in Warwickshire. Tel: +44 (0)1608 684416; whichfordpottery.com Arthur’s ContainerVenetian In order of planting from the bottom of the tub to the top 10 Tulip ‘Black Parrot’ 10 Tulip ‘Brown Sugar’ 10 Tulip ‘Rococo’ 10 Tulip ‘Palmyra’ 15 Hyacinth ‘Anastasia’ 15 Hyacinth ‘Woodstock’ 50 Iris reticulata ‘George’ 25 Crocus ‘Spring Beauty’ 25 Crocus ‘Orange Monarch’ Hyacinth ‘Anastasia’ Tulip ‘Black Parrot’ Tulip ‘Rococo’ Iris ‘George’
Try these outlets for testwillcontainersdistinctivethatstandtheoftime Crocus Online garden shop o ering containers in a wide selection of styles and materials. Tel: +44 578000;(0)1344crocus.co.uk Frome Reclamation Reclaimed Victorian coppers, clay pots and stone troughs. Tel: +44 (0)1373 463919; fromerec.co.uk Garden Trading Timeless, practical designs for home and garden. Tel: +44 (0)1993 845559; gardentrading.co.uk Lorfords Antiques Antique troughs, vats, urns and planters. Tel: +44 (0)1666 505111; lorfordsantiques.com
Follow Arthur on Instagram @arthurparkinson
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 73 IMAGES IMAGESWORLDGARDENSHUTTERSTOCK; Hyacinth ‘Woodstock’
74 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 IMAGES SHUTTERSTOCKNICHOLS;CLIVE
Lady Ursula’s Sea of Narcissus Naturalised da odils for a quarter acre 500 Narcissus ‘Actaea’ 500 Narcissus ‘Pheasant’s Eye’ 500 Narcissus ‘Tête-à-tête’ “ Crocus Narcissustommasinianus ‘Pheasant’s Eye’ Narcissus ‘Tête-à-tête’ Fritillaria meleagris
At Easton Walled Gardens the meadows are a highlight of spring. Owner Lady Ursula Cholmeley explains how you can naturalise bulbs to create your own GOOD SOURCES
Bulb Meadows
A range of bulb suppliers, from wholesale to niche Avon Bulbs Supplier of a wide range of bulbs, including unusual species such as disporum, cypripedium and ixiolirion. Tel: +44 (0)1460 249060; avonbulbs.co.uk Bloms Bulbs Long-standing and award-winning supplier of top-quality bulbs. Tel: +44 (0)1234 709099; bloms.co.uk Broadleigh Bulbs A leading propagator and provider of small bulbs. Tel: +44 (0)1622 845990; broadleighbulbs.co.uk Dutch Grown Dutch company established in 1882 and now run by brothers Ben and Pete. dutchgrown.co.uk Farmer Gracy A good selection of regular bulbs as well as some more unusual varieties. Tel: +44 (0)330 8087304; farmergracy.co.uk J Parkers Good for larger and wholesale orders of popular bulbs. Tel: +44 (0)161 8481100; jparkers.co.uk Peter Nyssen Well-established supplier of crowd-pleasing varieties, with economies of scale. Tel: +44 (0)161 7474000; peternyssen.com Pottertons Nursery Specialists in dwarf bulbs, based in the North East. Tel: +44 (0)1472 851714; pottertons.co.uk Sarah Raven The doyenne of cut-flower gardening sells sophisticated bulb collections and equipment. Tel: +44 (0)345 0920283; sarahraven.com Shipton Bulbs Welsh growers of native and naturalised UK bulbs. Tel: +44 (0)1994 240637; shiptonbulbs.co.uk
I f you want a flower meadow, a bulb meadow is good because you don’t need to worry about soil fertility,” explains Lady Ursula Cholmeley, who conceived the compelling bulb planting in the Cedar Meadow at Easton Walled Gardens in Lincolnshire. It began simply, with aconites under trees and snowdrops in the turf. To these were added Narcissus ‘WP Milner’, ‘Actaea’ and ‘Pheasant’s Eye’. In time she included smaller ‘Tête-à-tête’ and ‘Snow Baby’, which flower between snowdrops and the fi rst flush of larger da odils. Across the quarter-acre meadow, narcissus are planted in swathes of roughly 10m x 3m. Blues are provided by scilla and Crocus tommasinianus. For tulips, Ursula is a fan of ‘Apeldoorn Elite’: “We use this every year; they’re cheap, cheery and they don’t confuse the eye,” she explains. Of the camassias, C. quamash works best for her, and she also suggests Fritillaria meleagris for planting in drifts in cool, damp areas. For a simple da odil meadow, Ursula mixes 500 bulbs of each of her favourite varieties. “Throw large quantities onto the ground and plant them where they fall,” she advises. Key to this is knowing your capacity for bulb planting. “Planting 2,000 bulbs on your own can be soul destroying, so call in some friends.” Note where you have planted bulbs for naturalising so that in later years they can be interplanted with other bulbs. Cut your bulb meadow around the second week of June, then trim it like a lawn using a strimmer or an Allen scythe. Stop mowing in November or December when the foliage of the earliest bulbs often starts to appear. A meadow is a long-term project, so leave room for the narcissus to spread, and add new species incrementally to fi nd out what works and what doesn’t. “Don’t rush to fi ll every part of the meadow. You need the quiet spaces,” Ursula observes. ■ Easton Walled Gardens. Tel: +44 (0)1476 530063; visiteaston.co.uk
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NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 75 BEAUTY FROM BULBS
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76 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 ®
The Royal Horticultural Society. The Royal Horticultural Society, and its logo, are trade marks of The Royal Horticultural Society (Registered Charity No 222879/SC038262) and used under licence from RHS Enterprises Limited.
The Royal Horticultural Society. The Royal Horticultural Society, and its logo, are trade marks of The Royal Horticultural Society (Registered Charity No 222879/SC038262) and used under licence from RHS Enterprises Limited. The only bespoke swing and bench maker endorsed by the RHS sittingspiritually.co.uk +44 (0)1297 443084 America’s
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The only bespoke swing and bench maker endorsed by the RHS sittingspiritually.co.uk
CRAFTSPEOPLE
When he built a new seat for his garden, Sitting Spiritually founder Martin Young had no idea that swinging chairs would soon become his new business
WORDS Martin Young with the tools of his trade in his Lyme Regis workshop.
VIVIENNE HAMBLY PHOTOGRAPHS CARL MANIGLIA The Swing of Things NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 77
Nevertheless, the Youngs’ swing seats plugged a gap in the market. When they sold 26 pieces in 2005, Martin decided to leave his job to concentrate on making them full-time from his workshop at home near Lyme Regis. By 2006, 44 seats had passed through their books. “That was the point when I realised I needed some help,” he says.
If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a community to make a business. Three industries dominate the economy of rural Dorset close to “
CRAFTSPEOPLE
A re you sitting spiritually?” That is the question a friend of Martin Young asked one day when he saw him resting quietly on a garden swing seat. Martin, who had been meditating, sprang into action on hearing this and, in a eureka moment, ran inside to register the new domain name of the business he had recently begun. “I thought what a great name for a company – although some people assume we’re a Buddhist retreat!” Martin explains. That was in 2004. Since then, Sitting Spiritually has supplied rock stars and royalty with handmade wooden swing seats that are intended to be heirloom pieces handed down from one generation to the next. The origins of the company are more down-toearth than its illustrious clientele suggests. Martin is a keen hobby gardener with an RHS certificate in horticulture, and he and his wife, Celia, had sought to open their Dorset garden for the National Garden Scheme. They were the subject of a television programme, Open Gardens, in which Carol Klein followed the fortunes of gardeners attempting to have their gardens accepted for NGS opening.
78 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022
There could scarcely have been a better platform from which to promote his new piece, although Martin is very clear: “I didn’t build it to start a business; I built it to be able to open the garden.”
When a county organiser declared their garden lacked seating and would need to be improved before it could open, Martin set to work. “I’d always wanted a swing seat,” he recalls, but the selection on o er at his local garden centre left him unsatisfied and he sent o for a blueprint of a traditional American design. He had trained as a carpenter and joiner, so he dusted o his tools and with a bit of help from his friends put the chair together in the garden, just in time for the NGS opening.
Above Carpenters Tom Oughton and Scott McCarthy have worked together at Sitting Spiritually since 2011.
Lyme Regis: agriculture, tourism and building construction. Martin tapped his connections in the building industry to subcontract each new swingseat order to joiners already working in the area. Today, five joiners are licensed to make Sitting Spiritually seats from their own local workshops, and clients may order customised pieces or fully bespoke seats created to fulfil the most individual desires. Bob Andrews, a friend of Martin’s for 30 years, ensures each carpenter knows which order to work on, and Neil Lancaster, husband of PR manager Siobhan, draws upon his experience as a tool maker to create the company’s best-selling traditional rope swings, which are licensed by the RHS and are large enough for adults to swing on. According to Martin, orders are seasonal with spring and summer being the busiest times for the company. Over the past couple of years international orders have picked up, which has helped to even out the flow of work for the joiners. “We’re starting to Clockwise from top Rope swings are made by Neil Lancaster from his home workshop in Devon; round, seated rope swings are made from seasoned oak and can be personalised with an inscription; Neil Lancaster; the Pergola is designed for a climbing rose or honeysuckle. export to Australia and Japan and our first US order came from Florida in 2019,” he explains.
Designs for the Youngs’ seats and accessories come from many places and can begin with something a customer has sketched out themselves. These may then be used with permission and adjusted to make other seats. Some designs are influenced by the surrounding Dorset landscape: ammonites on the Jurassic coast are reflected in the top of a threelegged side table, or in the carved detail of a seat
NOVEMBER 2022 THE ENGLISH GARDEN 79
“My favourite moment is always when people ask to come and see the seats in our show garden, or say they’re on the website and have a query,” adds Martin. “If you run a business you have to take chances and not every chance comes out as a success. We’ve never had any complaints, but if there’s a problem, we fix it. Whatever the situation, our policy is always to put things right.” ■ Tel: +44 (0)1297 443084; sittingspiritually.co.uk
Although Martin has good relationships with local sawmills for the supply of certain products, most of the raw material comes from abroad, with each range being designed around a specific type of wood. By and large, trees in climates colder than the UK grow more slowly, making for a denser more enduring material. So, western red cedar from Canada is the material of choice for the Serenity range,
Celia and Martin’s daughter, Lucy, is an artist in her own right and often contributes to the creative process at Sitting Spiritually. Although there is no pressure on their children to take on the business when he and Celia retire, Martin admits it would be satisfying, were it to happen.
80 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 back. Specific wording can be carved into a seat, too, for anniversaries or births, or in memory of a treasured life. Some swing seats are self-supporting and come with their own wooden stands, others can be a xed to an existing structure or a substantial bough of a tree.
CRAFTSPEOPLE
Right James Amato adds detail to one of the bespoke creations. Below Martin and Celia Young started Sitting Spiritually in 2004. Bottom The Harmony in painted pine is the first seat the company made. a product sold under license to the RHS. “English red cedar grows a bit too fast and the knots tend to dry out,” Martin notes. Kiln-dried oak from eastern Germany, meanwhile, has formed the basis of the Tranquillity range for the past six years. English sawmills are useful for supplying more idiosyncratic pieces, however, such as the Kyokusen swing seat, which relies on naturally curving logs for its distinctive shape. Martin chooses these from local mills and then leaves them for three years to air dry down to a workable moisture content. “They’re a sculpture as well as somewhere to sit,” he insists. “I ask our customers not to buy it and put it away where it can’t be seen.”
“I wouldn’t like the business to die with me. It’s not compulsory that they take it on but I’d like them to. I love it, I absolutely love it,” he says.
Sparkling wintry gardens • Frost brings out the magic of Malverleys in Hampshire • In Cambridgeshire, the stark winter beauty of Chippenham Park • Garden design legend John Brookes’ former home and garden, Denmans in Sussex • A colourful winter display at The Down House in Hampshire • Tom Stuart-Smith designs a New Perennial-style garden for winter interest PLUS Walled Garden Special: a look at the history of Britain’s beautiful, productive walled gardens and three gorgeous examples of how they’re used and gardened todayIMAGES CONNOLLYMIMINICHOLS;CLIVE Next issue britsubs.com/englishgarden 800-998-0807 Don’t miss out. Subscribe now at SALEON8NOVEMBER
Old“ nameslocalfor poppies and‘Soldiers’include soldiers’”‘Red
82 THE ENGLISH GARDEN NOVEMBER 2022 LAST WORD Fall & Rise
When a crop of field poppies appears in the disturbed soil of a grass verge, Katherine Swift notes how they symbolise both remembrance and regeneration
ILLUSTRATION RIGBYJULIA PORTRAIT FRYBEVERLEY
last saw the light of day 50 or even 100 years ago, when they were still a common sight in the countryside. It was the disturbed soil of the First World War battlefields that gave rise to the fields of poppies memorialised in the emblems we wear to mark Remembrance Day, and the poppy wreaths that are laid every year by congregations to mark the anniversary of Armistice Day at the end of the First World War, and to commemorate the fallen of both World Wars and subsequent confl icts.
They put me in mind of the fi nal scene of ‘In Parenthesis’, an epic elegy for the thousands of Welsh soldiers who died in July 1916 at the Battle of the Somme in Mametz Wood. It was written by David Jones, one of the few survivors of the battle, and in the fi nal scene, a female figure of Death, the Queen of the Woods, chooses a di erent wildflower to lay beside the body of each dead soldier. This summer, the yellow Welsh poppy, Meconopsis cambrica also appeared, self-seeding itself in the garden, where we had been digging up the edges of the canal. In the wild, it is confi ned to Wales and the West where it fi nds the dampness it craves. Here, it has colonised the damp gravel around the canal. It has the same heartbreaking quality of fragility and toughness as the field poppy, but is perennial. Let it stay, I thought, in honour of those Welsh soldiers. ■
S
tanding in the lane that leads down to the house, my breath visible in the chilly air, there’s a haunting disconnect, a cognitive dissonance you might say, between my internal and external landscapes: a vivid memory of red poppies and midsummer heat and light in this autumnal landscape of fog and fallen leaves. It was one of many strange and wonderful things that happened in the garden during that strange year when the pandemic struck. Earlier, workmen had been converting the barn at the top of the drive into holiday cottages and dug trenches in the grass verge to lay pipes and cables. When operations were suspended under lockdown, a scattering of scarlet poppies appeared in the abandoned soil of the verge.
The seed of field poppies, Papaver rhoeas, needs disturbed soil to germinate and can lie dormant for many decades. Who knows when our verge was last ploughed or dug up? Not by me in the past 30 years. Nor by the men who installed telephone or electricity, years ago: that came in overhead, slung from poles and pylons.
It may be that these poppies
Poppies have been symbols of mortality since ancient times. The name poppy, derives from the Latin papaver, via Old English, and is said to date back to the Sumerian pa pa – to the very start of agriculture when poppies fi rst co-existed with us – springing up in ploughed soil among the wheat, cut down by sickle and scythe at harvest time. Old local names for poppies include ‘Soldiers’ and ‘Red soldiers’, recalling a time when men marched to war in red coats. It is no coincidence that the figure of Death is portrayed with a scythe: the Grim Reaper. It is their fragility that touches the heart, their vulnerability – the nakedness of the stems, the bowed neck of the flower buds, bared, as if inviting the sharp blade; the crumpled silk of the unfurling petals like the damp wings of dragonfl ies, newly emerged, trembling on the brink; and the flowers against the sun, with the pure transparency of stained glass; fallen, they are like splashes of blood.
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