Tom Stuart-Smith’s garden: Barn Hill in Hertfordshire

Last week I visited Tom Stuart-Smith’s garden in Hertfordshire.  I caught it just in time as the prairie garden was coming to an end BUT there were still a lot of wonderful specimens and also some Rudbeckia seedheads which were magnificent in their own right.  This day was organised by the Garden Museum at Lambeth

How contemporary sculpture mixes with New Vintage

How contemporary sculpture mixes with New Vintage I visited my friend Emma last week-end in Faversham, Kent.  You walk through the front door of her “town” house, through the house and very quickly find yourself in a small haven in the back garden which is hard-landscaped built on stone and broken up by lush planting

A day at Great Dixter

Great Dixter was the family home of gardener and gardening writer Christopher Lloyd – it was the focus of his energy and enthusiasm and fuelled over 40 years of books and articles. Now under the stewardship of Fergus Garrett and the Great Dixter Charitable Trust, Great Dixter is an historic house, a garden, a centre of

Burton Agnes, East Yorkshire

Simon Jenkins, author of England’s Thousand Best Houses, described Burton Agnes Hall as ‘the perfect English house’ and as one of the twenty best English houses alongside Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace and Chatsworth House.   http://www.burtonagnes.com/Home.html If you were ever unsure how to handle yew hedging here is your answer!  The gardens are really lovely and there

Aquilegia land

The aquilegia has to be one of the most delicate, pretty and breathtaking little flowers that you can find.  Beautiful little wispy bells of soft colours that fit into my “vintage” palette so well.  They come out at a perfect time of year… the daffs, primroses  and tulips have died back, Ok the bluebells are

Chelsea Physic Garden early in the flowering year

Chelsea Physic garden is always worth a visit and I wasn’t disappointed today.  One or two fabulous Spring flowers and a lot to come I can see.  The main herbal garden and Garden of World Medicine has had a complete overhaul.  I don’t think it is to everyone’s taste, possibly a bit dated but I

Spring is definitely here in Battersea Park

Never underestimate the pleasure of walking round a London park.  We really are very good at our parks and as a plant lover  there’s lots to see.   We have dogs so we are always walking, walking, walking but never seem to get bored when there is Richmond Park, Hyde Park and Battersea Park within easy

West Dean and Battersea Park crocus overload!

I spent yesterday at West Dean gardens – dare I call it the second day of Spring?  The first being when I went to Battersea Park at the week-end…  Both garden and park were absolutely glorious, both with a glut of crocus.  West Dean, near Chichester is home to the Edward James Foundation known for

Petersham Nurseries fit perfectly into my New Vintage style

We have just spent a couple of hours at Petersham nurseries  What a lovely place, I had forgotten.   They are based very near Richmond Park.   I went there about 8 years ago for a girlfriend’s birthday party (ALL girls!) and I was reminded to go there by Rona Wheeldon of Flowerona fame!  She

Caroline Garland, garden designer’s visit to Woolbeding, West Sussex

Given to the National Trust in 1957 by the Lascelles family fro 1972 Woodbeding has been leased to Simon Sainsbury, who restored the 17th century house and created and developed the extensive gardesn with Stewart Grimshaw.  Lanning Roper and Isabel and Julian Bannerman have had a marked influence on the garden’s design which is full

Caroline Garland’s visit to Great Fosters, Egham – a well kept secret!

The history of Great Fosters is made up of quite a mishmash of owners over the years so has quite a bit of architectural mix going back to Jacobean times but it is a lovely place with surprisingly beautiful gardens encompassing topiary, ancient and contemporary statues and a stunning rose garden with pergola.  If you

Caroline Garland’s visit to Le Bois des Moutiers…Lutyens Lutyens everywhere! with a smattering of Gertrude Jekyll

In fact this should really be the other way round.  The garden is a french garden in Normandy: the house designed in 1898 by Sir Edwin Lutyens and the garden by Gertrude Jekyll, the only one like it in France.. However where the planting is absolutely pure Jekyll heaven the house is pure Lutyens hell!