Towards the end of September, not far from Penrith, in the village of Melkinthorpe, somewhere in the middle of the beautiful countryside of Cumbria, we found the gate open to a fantastical and unique nursery.

An assembly of statue and ornament intermingled with plants greets us at the entrance and artfully built stone walls create a courtyard effect.

Developed in 1984 from a derelict site, Peter Scott created the nursery for his landscape business and employed a team of skilled craftsman. It is difficult to decide upon which archway to take.

An oak door leads into a building; half way between a fine barn and a conservatory it houses some tender plants and is the territory of a little wren.

Light comes in on one side through the full length windows, and at one end is a decorative stained glass window.

We take the narrow arch that leads through pots of towering bamboos,

and pass the office, reminiscent of a Tuscan farmhouse.

Further on is the terraced restaurant which has a slightly oriental look.

Japanese acers either side of the little wooden bridge.

Cornus kousa var. chinensis ‘China Girl’ is laden with fruit.

Old fashioned roses and clematis adorn bold brick pillars and you just can’t help but wonder if this really is a nursery or actually a private garden.

Yes, there are rows of plants, not just the acers and roses but in fact 15,000 varieties of rare and unusual shrubs, perennials, climbers,  and dwarf conifers, many of which are propagated on-site. It is the place for plantaholics.

Larch Cottage has supplied Botanical gardens such as  Kew, Durham and Sheffield, Universities and Colleges, many National Plant Collections, Alnwick gardens as well RHS Wisley.

Visitors never need feel alone; statues quietly appear in different corners and in many guises. Made from marble, bronze, lead and stone.

 

 

Good old Atlas heaves his world up through the sunflowers.

It is not all classical; there is a touch of the contemporary too.

Some pieces are commissioned to order, whilst others are sourced from reputable suppliers worldwide. There is also a comprehensive range of terracotta and glazed pots.

A wide arch, a neat brick path and more plants.

Classical columns provide the support which supply the perfect conditions for shady plants

Another arch, this time narrow and well guarded.

The path widens towards the end of the nursery,

and we find ourselves in the vegetable garden where healthy runner beans clamber over metal frames, and no doubt are a supply for the popular restaurant.

Through the produce the path leads to  the gate to the secret garden, open just on Wednesdays in aid of charity including two days in June and October for the NGS.

The freshly mown lawn invites us in. Encircled by borders planted with vigour and variety.

Neatly edged, the large labels identify the choice plants, these Alstroemia ‘Mauve Majesty’ are putting on a good display so late in the season.

and Malvia sylvestris ‘Marina’ is particularly welcome to a visiting bee.

Pink Diascia, with its long flowering season, never fails to delight.

The design of a circular lawn is repeated beyond,

and the wonderfully sounding Kniphofia ‘Wrexham Buttercup’ that I photograph for its Latin name, which I want to keep saying again and again, and here it sure catches the eye.

Calmly grazing on the lawn is  a charming family of bronze deer.

A smooth path, so perfect for all things with wheels,  winds through a great selection of shrubs,

until it reaches the still round pond. The plants reflect on the surface but the sun has left us now and the light has changed.

A variety of plants pack the water’s edge, such as the low growing Arum-lily

and the elegantly tall fennel.

It has all been recently constructed and a little chapel presides at the furthest point,

with an artistically painted interior, it is private and preserved for family occasions.

Erigeron karvinskianus grows naturally amongst the man-laid stones,

grasses such as Miscanthus sinensis ‘Sarabande’ contribute to a naturalistic planting,

while Hydrangea quercifolla ‘Burgundy’ gives a burst of autumn colour.

We return following the line of the natural stream, where a patchwork of leaves converge to hide the gently flowing water.

There is an orchard to the right bearing beautiful red apples Malus ‘Red Falstaff’ fit for any thespian, even a goddess too,

who now appears to be feeling the autumnal chill. This is quite a nursery and one not to be missed.

——-80——-

Arley Hall, one of the original gardens to be opened for the NGS way back in 1927, opened its gates for the Scheme this year on the 6th August.

The visitor is dwarfed by the immensely tall pleached lime avenue lining the approach to Arley Hall in Cheshire. Planted in 1856, I wonder at having to get up there to give these trees an annual clip.

Not many entrances have a Cruck Barn; just right of the clock tower arch, it was built in about 1470, the same time as the house. The ‘crucks’ I gather, are the strong pairs of oak beams curving up from the floor to the apex of the roof.

The  garden has been created by the same family over the past 250 years and is considered to be one of Britain’s finest. The map advises us that it will take several hours to walk round the twelve acres. So we set off through the ornate iron garden gate.

A series of charming areas have been designed here; they are like the warm-up to the great act that follows. At one end of the pretty Flag Garden, white agapanthus grow above dainty white clumps which spill out of terracotta pots and in spaces amongst the paving stones.

At the other end where the scent of roses fills the air, lavatera and lavender surround the feet of this nonchalant chap.

Then, crossing the avenue lined with its rigid high hedges of yew,

an occasional splash of red tumbles out of the green walls; it is the Scottish Flame Flower tropaeolum speciosum, whose origins are nothing to do with Scotland having been introduced from Chile by the Cornish plant hunter William Lobb during the mid 1840s . 

Topiary echoes the stone finial centred amongst the nasturtiums in the Herb Garden,

where herbs are laid out in striking patterns.

Finally in this line up is a small scented garden, probably at its best in Spring, it retains a charm throughout the year.

The aroma right now is coming from the honey-scented  Itea illicifolia growing against the wall to the right of the gate which stands open to the walled kitchen garden.

We first explore the long glasshouse, The Vinery built in the 1870s where, amongst the figs and vines there is an explosion of exotic plants :

The evergreen Australian Bluebell Creeper sollya heterophylla with its nodding blue bell-shaped flowers twines one of the upright poles,

the tender and unusual Iochroma australe from South America,

and the popular Passion flower,

Out in the garden sweet peas adorn wigwams of bamboo amongst salads and vegetables all arranged decoratively in raised beds.

Brought over by the present Viscount Ashbrook from a previous family home, Castle Durrow in Ireland, is an intricate white arbour, the perfect centrepiece for the floriferous walk.

Even larger than the Kitchen Garden is a further Walled Garden, where we find this friendly beast.

It is a vast space, and an aged photo taken from the informative display-boards in the old stables, shows how in the 1940s and 1950s this area once earned its keep with rows of fruit trees with vegetable beds behind.

During these years the garden was closed for the Scheme but thankfully for us market gardening ceased to be profitable and the garden, having suffered much neglect over the years began a programme of restoration. The gardens were opened to the public in the 1960s and once again for the NGS too.  Now it is a delightful area with ornaments and mown green lawns edged with herbaceous borders,

with a formal pond and gentle fountain as the focal point.

We exit this area through the magnificent gates,

and find ourselves admiring the long herbaceous borders for which Arley has become so famous. These double borders can be seen on a plan of 1846 and it is thought they were the first of their kind to be planted in England.

Originally stretching in unbroken lines running along the brick wall on the north side and yew hedge to the south, the beds were broken up into five sections with yew buttresses some thirty years later.

The watercolour by E. A. Rowe of 1892 illustrate that the borders have remained unchanged today, except for the gravel path which has been replaced with grass.

The alcove situated at the west end was built in 1790 and is now a venue to tie the knot.

We slip through the hedge on the south side,

and look towards the eighteenth century Tea Cottage once used for garden tea parties and where shrub roses are underplanted with a variety of hardy perennials.

Through the spires of verbascum we can’t help but notice the fantastical cylinders of evergreen oak Quercus ilex growing here since the 1860s; there are fourteen in all.

They are impressive in stature especially looking up from the sundial circle.

Just off to the side is the Rootery, a type of rock garden combined with a romantic woodland dell of ferns and maples, it comes alive in spring with the flowering azaleas. 

Nearby is the fish garden; fish swim in the pool and, at the four corners of which is a splash of purple agaretum beneath the arching and delicate stems of the appropriately named angel’s fishing rods dierama mossii.

Finally we head along the Furlong Walk towards the house. Just as a reminder, a furlong is an eighth of a mile, 220 yards or if you are that little bit younger than me, 201 metres. On one side is the arrangement of gardens we have so enjoyed and on the other is the parkland. Cattle graze amongst old oaks whose outstretched arms bend to the ground in a graceful gesture reminding us that they too have been here for a very long time.

Each generation of this family have contributed to the evolution of the garden. The weather does not allow us to do justice to the Grove and Woodland on the east side of the Hall created by  the present Viscount Ashbrook over the past 30 years. However we have seen such variety; design and intrigue, history and progress, a paradise of plants and a nursery too. Arley Hall has its own very comprehensive website:http://www.arleyhallandgardens.com/the-gardens, but why not hear about the garden from Viscount Ashbrook himself who joins Mary Berry and Stephen Lacey on Tuesday 31st October 2017, tickets can be bought at https://www.ngs.org.uk/whats-new/news/post/the-glory-of-the-garden-with-mary-berry.

——-80——-

 

This simple gate is the entrance to an impressive arboretum, open this Sunday 22nd October 10am – 3pm it is situated at Framingham Earl just 3 miles south east of Norwich.

There are 14 hectares (34 acres) here of a great collection of trees originally laid out by Dr Edward Rigby a physician and surgeon in Norwich. He was also a great lover of the natural world and having bought the estate in 1786 he began planting in about 1805. Originally called Framingham Hall the name was changed to The Chase when Geoffrey Colman acquired the property in 1929.

The house was demolished in 1973 a few years after the death of Colman’s widow Lettice.  The Beech Walk remains as a memory of the grand house it once was.

Framingham Hall is shown on Faden’s map of Norfolk 1797 and this more recent OS map outlines the demolished hall and shows the line of the Beech Walk centred on the old site.

It is that time of year when here and there are signs of autumn with the leaves beginning to turn, perhaps on one specimen like this nissa sylvatica ‘Tupelo’.

or an entire tree catching the light in the dark green canopy.

It is not a neglected wood, young trees have been recently planted and benches are placed in strategic places such as at the end of this ride,

or in front of the remains of the old balustrade on the North side of the house.

This old photograph shows the South side.

Those elegant ladies might have wandered  through growing shrubs and sat in this graceful rotunda now slightly hidden from view.

In the eighteenth century this classical statue would have symbolised the cultured taste and status of the owner. His presence remains majestic amongst the giants:

such as the Cedars of Lebanon cedrus lebani which are quite magnificent,

the large tight fat cones are firmly attached to the graceful arching branches,

unlike these tiny ones on a fir which drop so freely.

A fallen branch snakes its way up the hill,

where on a mound surrounded by sycamore stands a gazebo. Built in 2000 from English oak it celebrates the one hundredth birthday of H.M The Queen Mother, the creation of the arboretum and the start of the new millennium.

And it is from here that you have a glorious view, apparently out towards the sea at Great Yarmouth in the faraway distance; it is the spire of  St Andrew’s Church Framingham Pigot, we can see today peeping above the trees.

We have driven in from the South Lodge so decide to walk on further down the drive towards the North Lodge catching sunlight through the raised tree canopy,

and admiring the ever-changing shapes of nature.

In a wide clearing a plaque informs us that these American species trees were presented to Sir Timothy Colman KG by the governors and members of the Memorial Trust of the 2nd Air Division USAAF upon his retirement in November 2004 as Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Norfolk in appreciation of his support and encouragement over the years.

Particularly golden and, ironically because of its name, is the Quercus Velutina ‘Black Oak’.

From here we make our way to the lakes passing through the tumbled-down old rockery,

now overgrown, it is the bright stems of bamboo that have become a focal point.

A stately urn remains amongst the shrubs and trees,

and the end of the wall presents a reminder of past times.

I am with a tree expert and we delight in a species he does not know, an Indian Horse Chestnut Aesculus Indica. Related to the more common Horse Chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum it was introduced to Britain in 1851 by Colonel Henry Bunbury (a friend of Sir Joseph Hooker, Director of Kew), who planted seeds in his family’s garden at Barton Hall in Suffolk.

We have come to photograph the arboretum today for the Norfolk  Booklet and I admire the skill of our NGS photographer who takes such care and is clearly a professional,

whilst I am more hurried and happy to snap!

It is a series of lakes, and this cygnet appears alone on this lowest one.  Dwarfed by a the bronzed Swamp Cypress taxodium distichum which grows up ram rod-straight from one of the little circular islands.

All around, the blue sky and autumn colours are reflected on the still water.

We have wandered around for at least a couple of hours and it is time to ascend back up the South-facing hill. Not a flat part of Norfolk, it is a beautiful landscape and this very private arboretum, a rare Sunday treat, is surely one not to be missed. The Barn is the final garden to be open for Norfolk NGS 2017 and ends a fantastic season in this lovely county.

——-79——-

I could not resist visiting this garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith when it opened for the NGS back at the beginning of August. Surrounding a country house situated just north of Nantwich in Cheshire, Cogshall Grange was built in the 1830s and was purchased in 2004 by the present owner who refurbished the buildings. The first phase of the garden was completed five years later.

Parking the car in the field, I realised that I was not the only one keen to visit this garden. We then approached the house from across the lawn.

The solid walls of this Georgian house are grounded within a parterre; not your traditional design, but one that is contemporary and fun with rounded box balls separating the drifts of colour in the beds.

Cleanly laid York paving surrounds the parterre and plants spill over, but there is still plenty of space for access.

The box balls playfully roll on around the glass-fronted extension.

From this terrace a gravel path snakes its way narrowly through a medley of planting enriched with striking agapanthus providing blotches of deep blue.

We decide not to take this path but to walk further down the length of the wall where the gate, boldly framed in a black metal surround, is undeniably the intended entrance into the walled garden.

The spacious structure is mirrored on the inside of the wall where conveniently placed is a comfortable bench where we sit for awhile and survey the scene.

We feast our eyes not on military rows of vegetables growing upon brown earth, but a palette of perennial flowers swathed in front of us, not a patch of soil is to be seen.

 

Gravel paths weave in and out of Stipa tenuissima, Perovskia and Crocosmia, behind which climbers clothe the brick walls.

In the very centre of this walled garden is an elegant pool where circles of waterlilies float effortlessly. On one side the prairie-style perennials and grasses that we have just walked through are reflected in the dark water,

whilst the hornbeam cloud topiaries rising up above the haze of moor grass, Molinia caerulea ‘Poul Petersen’, are reflected on the other side.

It is not all prairie-style planting; Hydrangeas, Eupatorium and Anenome x hybrida fight for space in the corner.

Underplanted with Rodgersia podophylla, the hornbeam clouds formed from 30-year-old trees are trimmed 3 times a year whilst the Molinia standing to the right will be hand cut  in late January. It is perhaps no surprise that there a 3 gardeners employed and we are grateful that they have given up their free time today to answer our many questions.

A simple oak door opens out onto a wild flower meadow through which meandering paths are mown.

Intensely planted with the wild and the almost wild flowers, it is an annual mix purchased from http://www.pictorialmeadows.co.uk. It will receive an annual cut at the end of the summer.

Here too is a naturalistic pond; the main gates to the drive in the far distance remain closed today.

We walk around the grange buildings and arrive at the back of the new extension. Hakonechloa macra grows exuberantly around the footings, like a deep pile carpet softly shimmering,

it gently moves in the light breeze and almost hides the paved pathway.

This grass, a native of Japan sweeps around to the front porch encircling a group of lilies,

and crossing the drive where it spreads under the trees.

In the parkland opposite and a little distant off is  ‘Lover’s Seat’ by Sandra Bell. Cast in bronze, it reflects the courting practice of those Georgian times when lovers were always chaperoned.

There are no fixed borders; the mown lawn merges seamlessly into uncut parkland.

‘Blythe Spirit’ another piece by Sandra Bell is placed looking out to the uninterrupted view and hidden ha-ha.

No dark patches of thinning grass appear under the trees spread across the lawn, for they all have generous and attractive plantings of ground cover. We sweep past this red persicaria in the direction of the stables where teas and ice creams are being served.

And even here the planting does not end. Troughs overflow with soft subtle combinations of Helichrysum, Scaevola aemura and Verbena.

This happens to be my third Stuart-Smith garden in my Ninety, Trentham and Brockhampton Cottage being the other two. His gardens never fail to delight and here in six acres there is a mix of the formal and the informal. The beautiful contemporary prairie-planting blends effortlessly with the surrounding parkland and countryside beyond. Definitely plan a visit next year when the garden will open on the 8th July.

——-78——-

It was a dark threatening sky descending over Burmington Grange on a Saturday last month. Burmington is a small rural village with a population of just 164 and is situated a few miles from Shipston-on-Stour. Garden owner Patrick who greeted us at the gate, thought I was coming on a bike and although staying with friends nearby I was very relieved to have taken the car!

We began our tour by looking to the right of the house where there is an ordered pattern of greens in a variety of texture and form. It is the lines of silver willow-leaved pears Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’ that look so distinctive against the dark storm clouds.

We did not delay but hurried across the immaculate drive to where the gates were waiting wide open,

and found ourselves in the colourful and productive fruit and vegetable garden.

Looking down from above the Kiwi actinidia deliciosa seemed to wave us on,

and we hurriedly admired the almost thornless tangle of Cratageus tanacetifolia standing high above the wall brimming with red berries,

and looked on enviously at the pears hanging from their outstretched branches trained against the wall.

A cloudburst forced us to take shelter in the neat little greenhouse where for some time we waited for the storm to pass whilst longing to pick one of those juicy red apples.

Eventually the rain subsided and we walked through into an enclosed garden in front of the Barn.

It is just the perfect place for a pool, south facing and sheltered. At one end, amongst the variety of shrubs, salvias, sedums and aeonium blend together, a contrast to the triangular topiary.

Along one side of the pool tall ‘Italianate’ yews divide but do not hide the swimming area, and on the other side is the wall from the vegetable garden which is adorned with a collection of climbers.  The pool is looking a little more enticing now the sky has turned blue.

At the Barn end, large pots are planted to perfection, overflowing with Salvia ‘Amistad’, Canna and Helichrysum.

This is a sheltered area and we decided to take tea served in the Barn while the weather was making up it’s mind.

The garden has an air of maturity and it is hard to believe that it was conceived only 13 years ago. The open door in the wall beckoned us.

Through the crab apple trees we looked down to the sunken garden laid out with roses, herbaceous plants, and fine lollipops of Portuguese laurel, prunus lusitanica

The crisp neat edges of the verdant lawn paths and neatly trimmed lavender accentuated the relaxed habit of erigeron karvinskianus which dances around the pond.

Seen from all angles it is a delightful arrangement.

The yew has been cleanly cut, and ‘gate posts’ are shaped into what are amusingly known as ‘Patrick’s thistles’.

We took the elegant steps up to the house and from under the tree we viewed the Warwickshire countryside rolling away before our eyes.

The spectacular Pineapple lily Eucomis grows at the foot of the walls of the house,

whilst the fragrant rosa ‘Aloha’ gently climbs the mellow Cotswold stone.

At the end of the terrace that runs along the front of house, is an enclosed garden seemingly made square by the clipped hedges which surround it,

but on entering it is in fact round, made so by the border that gently repeats its pattern of planting around a circular lawn.

A dip in the hedge provides a view of the unblemished countryside.

Moving round to the shaded side of the house we found an interesting range of trees,  growing in a less formal area.  The meadowy grass has paths mown through and is kept away from the base of the young trees like this Paper Bark maple, acer griseum. 

The berries are brightening and leaves turning on this Sorbus aucuparia.

Returning to the house a cube of variegated box caught my eye,

and a fine yew cone marks the corner from where we walked back along the terrace in front of the house.

Once more we admired, the charming arrangement below and in particular the selection of colourful salvias.

Too wet to explore we were happy to gaze at the bountiful apple orchard over the smiling gate,

A family garden, immaculate and in a perfect location.  Perched upon a hill the terraced garden embraces the view while parts remain well sheltered from the wind. Opening in the second week of September which may seem late in the season for garden visiting. Burmington Grange with its rich planting displays a plethora of colour and demonstrates that Summer is by no means over.  Despite the rain it has been a delightful afternoon and even the Dahlias show they can weather a storm.

——-77——-

Often, I am able to find a garden open which fits into my travel plans and helps break a long  journey. Driving North on our way to the River Tay last Saturday, there was very conveniently a garden open, just off the A66 at Appleby-in-Westmoreland.

I love this time of year, so often blue skies and liquid clear light. Not a bit of it today, this was the view through the windscreen as we parked the car!

Never one for letting a drop of rain stop me from having a look at a garden, I quickly crossed the road where the garden gate was wide open. An impressive purple leaved prunus cerasifera pissardii, stands at the front. An unfortunate name for this popular tree, I always think, and we have to blame Monsieur Pissard, a gardener to the Shah of Iran who introduced the tree to France in the 1880s.

The small front garden to the right of the front door, is the newest area and was completed in 2012. Planted with shade loving plants and a variety of shrubs including acers there are already signs of autumn tints.

Across the drive is a little patch of lawn behind which a small woodland garden acts as a sort of buffer to the road and the pub next door.

A path invites us through the oriental arch which has the delicious climbing Jasminum ‘Clotted Cream’ still in flower.

We walk to the left of the house where a clump of bamboo hides the greenhouse and the garden begins to rise up quite steeply behind.

Known as the circle garden it has pots of Dahlia ‘Classic Swan Lake’ which continue to perform in these wet conditions.

Designed by Ian Huckson, who began the planting in 2008, the garden is less than half an acre in size. It is easier to explain the layout with this aerial shot borrowed from Ian’s own website: www. engcougars@btinternet.com. We have entered the stage, so to speak, over to the left.

First we duck under the archway smothered in the leaves of clematis and rose,

and, we could follow the narrow path to the right through the dark leaved sambucus ‘Black lace and acer palmatum ‘Bloodgood’ to the old apple tree where a wooden seat cunningly curves around its roots and embraces the slope,

 

but instead we decide to walk on upwards past the slender ‘bollard’ of yew,

keeping the boundary hedge to our left and ignoring the next path to the right. We admire the path positively spilling over with perennials.

In the topmost corner we find a wooden bench,

from where, through the rain, we can take in much of the garden with the central bed containing a selection of grasses intermingled with bright splashes of perennials.

There is so much packed into this border which has a  great combination of texture and colour.

It does not matter that this is not an Indian Summer’s day, the back border running along the stone wall has plenty of colour too; sunny helianthus,

tall spikes of cimicifuga racemosa ‘Atropurpurea’,

and the wonderfully sounding salvia ‘Hot lips’.

Glancing back along the dry gravel path we can enjoy asters, sedums and hesperanthus growing around clipped box buns.

An area is divided into raised beds and set aside for the growing of vegetables, fruit and cut flowers. The helichrysum are keeping their blooms tightly closed,

while water drips from the luminous crab apples.

Summer clings on with the last of the sweet peas; growing nearly eight feet high they have to be the tallest that I have encountered.

Steps descend  to the level of the house where leafy ferns emerge from the wall and we can gaze up to the garden cascading down. Walking along the length of the cottage we are able to access the greenhouse,

where vines are grown more as a means of shade than a bacchanalian feast,

and Lady Boothby, that brightest of climbing fuchsias, provides a little glamour.

Parahebe ‘Snow clouds’ softens the short stone steps which we ascend,

to find handsome phormium ‘Margaret Jones’ surrounded by the self-seeding anaphalis triplinervis.

Nearby another white flower grows tall and shrubby, it looks suspiciously like Japanese knotweed, but I am assured that it is fagopyrum, the seeds of which are the edible  buckwheat.

This little aeonium is not the only one to be drenched,

the rain is really coming down in stair-rods!

 

It is not easy to garden on a slope but Ian has cleverly designed a garden which is both accessible and beautiful. Paths move us seamlessly around the different areas. His plant list is phenomenal providing a display hard to beat all year round. Even on such a wet day we have enjoyed the splendour of what Tim Richardson describes as ‘the fifth season’. It is hard to believe this once only grew rhubarb!

——-76——-

There are 10 acres to see at Coton Manor, 10 miles North of Northampton, a garden considered to be one of Britain’s finest and one that is at its most magnificent in September when it is open for a day for the NGS.

Before entering the garden I cannot help but admire the medley of greens and yellows  of the clematis and vine intertwined against the Northamptonshire brick.

What a joy to find an accessible ramp through the open garden gate.

Just inside there is the soothing sound of water trickling from a charming little fountain.

It is a welcoming terrace that stretches in front of the house; colours are gentle to the eye and there is plenty of space.

The low wall in the corner is a perfect height for pots overflowing with a variety of pelargonium.

The terrace sweeps elegantly left-handed around the house where more pelargoniums look as if they are best in show.

The popular garden school was started in 1994 and overlooks the old rose garden. Replanted in 2006 with selected plants that do not need feeding, watering or staking there seems to be plenty going on in this sheltered spot.

A fountain and pool  is backed by the semi-circle border perfectly balanced with sedum and agapanthus.

Late roses gracefully climb the walls and for a moment you think it could be June.

We slip through the yew hedge into the woodland area where we find  Pan with his pipes,

and return through the yew hedge to view the long border backed by the holly hedge. The guide book suggests it is at its best in July but now in September it is still a riot of colour.

There are a number of habitats here and we move out of the shade of the woodland and take the sunny  steps down,

to follow the well-made paths through the water garden, where the verdant planting brings a feeling of peace and calm.

We can look back towards the house over the pond where the swimming ducks are hidden by Gunnera growing boldly by the edge.

There is plenty of natural water here and having walked through the bog garden we find water flowing through a rill in the centre of the orchard.

I was not ready for the spectacular sight of these two coming round the corner, accompanied by two small feathery outriders in stockinged feet,

With elegant steps they seem to want to show us the way.

But it has begun to rain heavily so we rush to take cover in the tea room where I am delighted to find a book about Coton Manor written by a one time fellow student Ann Benson.

An interesting read about how the garden has evolved and the families who lived here. It is a reminder that gardens are all about the people who make them. The plant lists at the back are useful too.

This is a garden that you just do not want to leave any part unseen, so when the rain has stopped we continue our exploration,

returning to the lawns and our pink-coloured friends. There is a lovely balance of open space, water and strong planting.

I wonder if this border which runs along the edge of the meadow, rich in colour, has been planted with flamingos in mind.

So amazed are we by the reality of the pink flamingoes we thought we’d better check out this chap as he stands so very still in the wild flower meadow.

Pictures show this is a bluebell wood, and at this time of year we have to imagine the carpet of blue covering the floor around the trunks that stand so silently tall.

Walking back over the lawns we admire the blue and yellow border

which merges into the red border. The planting is intense and I can’t help but admire the red clumps of dahlia ‘ragged robin’.

It is an inspiration to see what can be achieved in these borders in late summer.

The final burst of colour is in the ‘acacia border’ near to the house; the last acacia was felled in 2013 and facing south east this bed is right now a splash of pinks and purple.

Coton has its own nursery and that in itself is a delight.

Rows of high quality plants fill the walled garden, the majority of which are propagated here and taken from specimens growing in the garden.

There is the sound of water here too, flowing into an attractive pond.

I look for my dahlia ‘ragged robin’ and fancy this fuchsia paniculata,

but the gardeners have downed tools today and have gone on a visit ironically, to East Ruston in Norfolk (http://www.e-ruston-oldvicaragegardens.co.uk).

I will have to be content with some chicory I found amongst the dahlias being offered for sale under this huge Black Walnut tree.

It is the very same tree as in this picture taken some 90 years ago of the present owner’s grandfather.

Coton is a special place that I have wanted to visit for some time and no doubt I will return. It has evolved through three generations of family and with its high standard of horticulture it is evident that although open to the public, it is still a much loved private garden.

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Many of us have been inspired by Sarah Raven https://www.sarahraven.com/ (for those of you who don’t know), so I could not resist a visit to her garden at Perch Hill near Brightling in Sussex when she opened for the NGS on a Thursday in late August.

It had been simply dreadfully wet the day before, and as we parked in the field below the house a lady in the next door car told me how glad she was that she had not come the previous day, “Much better to come on an NGS day” I suggested, “Oh, why is that?” she asked, “the people are so much nicer” I replied and swiftly moved up through the meadow past the willow beds to where the garden gate was open.

Narrow paths divide this first part of the garden which is laid out in a sort of gloriously floriferous grid system, where beds of flowers are cut for Sarah’s flower arranging courses.

As we walked up and down the gravel paths there was a burst of colour on either side. An area originally devoted to annuals, it is now full of perennials grown for picking such as the striking persicaria orientalis standing at a full five feet tall,

and slightly shorter, swathes of plants notably zinnia, either lime coloured (zinnia Benary’s Giant Lime),

or in pinky/red (zinnia Queen Red Lime); paired in a vase together they look stunning. It is for these colour combinations that Sarah is so famous.

The plants are cultivated and trialled here before they are offered for sale and I wonder if  this rudbeckia ‘Russet Glow’ will be added to the collection.

Structures have that unpretentious ‘home-made’ feel to them, constructed from the willows that I passed on my way in. Arches to support climbers up and over the path,

or simply as a decorative focal point at the end of a parade of dahlias.

Twenty three years ago this was a tumbledown ex-dairy farm which Sarah and her husband Adam renovated. As we walk through the hedge up to the house, the concrete farm track that we cross over is the only evidence of what it might have been.

The neatly laid brick path brings us to the garden directly in front of the house with its old apple tree towering above the soft planting of flowers and structured box balls.

A path runs horizontally right to the barn where there is the feel of a cottage garden,

with perhaps a suggestion of Great Dixter, a garden not so far away. The plants in their enthusiasm almost hide the pathway;

there is not an inch of ground left uncultivated.

I thought I would encounter a far more commercial operation but this is very much a family home, and perched on a hill it must be heavenly to sit here, admire

and watch everything that grows either in the trial garden below,

or look out at the distant view beyond. It is here that Sarah’s husband Adam Nicolson asks if we have come far and is amazed to hear that we ventured out from Norfolk and, just for a moment we feel like martians from another planet. He has converted the farm to an organic 90 acres, replanting hedges and encouraging wild flowers, and begins to warm to us as we admire the wildflower meadow close by.

Just round the corner is the shepherd’s hut familiar to anyone who has read Sarah’s garden cook book.

No area is left unplanted even tucked away on the north side of the house,

and further on still, the former cart sheds are incorporated into the design of the garden,

and we look back through the rich tapestry of colour

where to the right the detached oast house, an office for Adam, rises out of  bright tithonia mixed with soft miscanthus grass.

 

A small marquee is set up on the lawn set ready for this afternoon’s  demonstration.  It is time for coffee and cake which is served in the beautifully restored barn.

Gardens never stand still and in an area by the house, once shady and muddy is the most recent renovation in what is now called the Dutch yard and where water deliberately flows gently over a rustic tank.

Sarah is famous not only for her skill in growing and arranging flowers but also her imaginative ideas for the planting of pots. Everywhere there is a variety of containers which are filled with delightful combinations of bulbs, annuals and perennials, or sometimes simply a single splash of colour such as pink diascia on the corner of the barn.

It is not just flowers either; edible crops are grown, naturally in an ornamental way, which supply the family and also the kitchens that are used either when a course is running or on open days.

A grass path cuts diagonally across the slope garden up to the glasshouse,

where at one end is table and chairs and a loud display of geraniums,

and at the other it is a leafy jungle of crops of ripening aubergine, peppers and tomatoes.

I always learn something new on a garden visit and today is no exception. I have discovered that aromatic salvias can help to keep roses relatively disease-free, preventing the dreaded black-spot and mildew.

In a letter to Beth Chatto, in the 1990s Christopher Lloyd described Sarah as “really energetic and creative”,  proof of which can be seen in not only her enthusiastic writing, presentations and her business but also in her charming garden. Lloyd went on to sum up her influence as “a more dynamic and showy style of gardening than has been fashionable for many years”,  testimony of which can be seen in the number of visitors on an Open Day who have come to admire it for what is essentially a private home.

I am off to order my tulips from her delightful catalogue, the illustrations of which will now have much more meaning.

Put it in your diary for a jaunt next year but do get there in good time.

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I have for some years now been meaning to visit Scotney Castle, a National Trust property near Lamberhurst in Kent. It qualifies as one of my ‘ninety’ because it opens once a year for the NGS. So on my way driving down to Sussex a few weeks ago with fellow garden owner Kate, we took the opportunity to call in.

It was a thoroughly miserable day so we took shelter by looking inside the house first. Commissioned by Edward Hussey III the house was built by the architect Anthony Salvin between 1837- 44. The garden was created at the same time, and with the house positioned to overlook the Old Castle and estate, the style is conducive to the perfect picturesque country home.

There are essentially four gardens: the formal terraces by the house, a walk through the quarry, the ruined castle or romantic folly, and the walled garden.

Near the front door is the hallmark of  many an English country house, the Magnolia grandiflora.

The terrace by the house is very unfussy and a group of hydrangeas try to lift our spirits on this grey day.

Gravel surrounds the house and the terraced lawns are left un-mown in order to conserve the green-winged orchids which flower in April and May.

No sign of the orchids on this wet August day, just an occasional showing of an ox-eye daisy. My companion is dismayed and feels the wildflower look is not in keeping with a house of this era.

On the north-easterly side, steps lead down to a fountain where the view stretches over the Weald.

Lying in wait on the fountain a cat remains hopeful for a fish or two.

Once the scene of Victorian splendour,

there is now an air of decay on this side of the house.

Could this really have once been a place for bathing beauties?

From the Belvedere at the end of the terrace

we look down through the mist to the ruined Castle below; the autumn tints are just beginning to come,

and descend through paths of mature evergreen azaleas and rhododendrons.

From the top of the quarry we look back up at the house,

before disappearing further down the ancient-looking stone path.

It is from here that the stone was quarried to build the house.

It is a lovely walk through a dense collection of mixed shrubs and we particularly admire a fine specimen of the hydrangea family kirengeshoma palmata, just coming into flower.

Emerging from the quarry there is a patch of perennials planted to provide a little colour for this time of year,

and arrive at the centrepiece of this picturesque landscape, the ruined Castle. It was partially demolished by Edward Hussey III to create a romantic folly.

Some folly, it is much larger than I imagined and we cross over the bridge,

where below, a clump of Pontederia cordata hugs the edge.

It is not all ruined, for we are able to climb the stairs and enjoy the view from the upstairs windows.

Wisteria climbs over solid archways, inviting us through into the garden beyond,

where there is still plenty of colour in the border running along the ruined walls.

Itea illicifolia cascades down from up high.

The rain is persistent but does not detract from the beauty of this watery setting.

Returning to the house the leaves of the liquidamber styraciflua are just one of the many fine trees that are beginning to turn.

On the west side of the house is the hexagon-sided Walled Garden and as we enter we are confronted by blaze of colour, dahlias one side

and sunflowers underplanted with nasturtiums on the other.

A traditional water carrier is reduntant today.

It is not just flowers that grow; there are plenty of vegetables and we are reminded that the pumpkin season will soon be upon us.

We love the style of label embedded in the soil.

It is such a pleasure to see a huge variety of fruit trees skilfully  trained against the walls.

The NGS and the NT have a long association. After the war the NGS offered to donate funding to the National Trust to help restore and preserve important gardens. In return, the National Trust opened many of its most prestigious gardens for the NGS, a partnership that lasted for many years.

Today each organisation has gone its separate way with the NGS focusing more on funding nursing charities than conservation. A few properties such as Scotney with the garden full of all year-round interest also open their garden gates for the scheme. Despite the rain we have found plenty to enjoy and it is well worth a visit when it is open for the NGS in May.

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