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for the glowing review! "Go ask Alice ... where all the best vineyard gardens are. She's an erudite charmer; you'll have fun!"
England

Enchanting East Lambrook .. The Iconic Cottage Garden of Margery Fish

Spring Color – East Lambrook Manor Gardens

Spring Color East Lambrook Gardens (Alice Joyce photo)

A simple yet inviting gateway in Somerset, England invites you to enter….

East Lambrook Gateway (Alice Joyce photo)

East Lambrook Manor, situated in a delightfully rural setting in East Lambrook, South Petherton: The site of the iconic gardens created in the 1940s through the ’60s by Margery Fish. Mrs. Fish’s gardens transport visitors through intimate spaces overflowing with densely planted borders. These famous gardens continue to draw avid garden lovers from near and far. And those who are familiar with Margery Fish’s prolific writings arrive with the desire to experience the informal yet lush planting referred to as cottage gardening. The style popularized in the books and articles written by this knowledgeable plantswoman.

The home of Walter and Marjorie Fish, a 15th century manor house now opens its gates on a regular basis to gardening aficionados. The premises boast a plant nursery, art exhibitions, horticultural courses, and special events. And most of all, the beautifully maintained gardens highlight a wealth of geraniums and snowdrops, among a rich palette of perennials, bulbs and vines: Companion plantings include Euphorbia and Eryngium – stalwarts for their strong form in the garden. Poppy, iris, and coneflower are among plants adding colorful notes. The gardens’ shady areas feature lovely specimens such as Corydalis and Brunnera, hellebores and Astrantia.

East Lambrook Manor (Alice Joyce photo)

East Lambrook Manor Gardens (Alice Joyce photo)

East Lambrook Gardens in Spring (Alice Joyce photo)

East Lambrook Gardens (Alice Joyce photo)

Climbers and vines are so essential to exuberant, floriferous cottage gardens. Personally, I’m dotty about  the Lady Banks rose – specifically the yellow form, ‘Lutea’, an early bloomer that I found clambering with great vigor at East Lambrook. And a white wisteria … breathtaking!

Finding references to Margery Fish’s keen eye for interweaving old-fashioned plants with contemporary specimens is quite common. This brings to mind an article by Penelope Hobhouse, first published in the journal, HORTUS, and included in…

By Pen & By Spade: An Anthology of Garden Writing. Ms. Hobhouse writes, “Margery Fish… collected hardy plants which she arranged to emphasise each specimen’s particular beauty, rather than seeking any unity of garden design.” In the same book, an article by Stephen Lacey draws attention to Euphorbias, “E. characias has bluer leaves, darker bracts (aptly described as ‘lovebird green’ by Margery Fish) and chocolate borwn eyes…”

If  you’re passionate about flora, having an opportunity to tour East Lambrook Manor offers an experience that can be as informative as it is enticingly sensory.

Nearby, (actually next door), I recommend East Lambrook Farm B & B if you’d like to stay over in the area. Comfortable accommodations are in a picturesque 17th century farmhouse, on a quiet lane.

Lady Banks Rosa Lutea (Alice Joyce)

East Lambrook Manor Gardens (Alice Joyce photo)

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England

Decidedly Romantic Dorset - Athelhampton House and Gardens

The Corona – Athelhampton Photo Copyright © Alice Joyce

A formal symmetry distinguishes the landscaped gardens of Athelhampton House in Dorset, yet a pervasive warmth bolsters the effects of each enclosed space within the layout. Perhaps one’s sensory experience is enhanced by the mellow patina of aged stone clothing the garden architecture and the impressive manor house that holds forth within the inviting estate.  As I explored the gardens, the muted hue of ancient ham stone walls felt like an embrace, articulated most effectively in the design of the Elizabethan-style Corona: a room defined by gracefully curving walls, their arcs and narrow pediments outlining sections of tall emerald hedging. The atmospheric effect of this perfectly composed space is pure magic.

To visit Athelhampton is to immerse oneself in the history of an estate that spans a thousand years.

Descend the central staircase to The Great Court,which presents a magnificent vignette. The meticulously clipped pyramidal topiary forms surround a pool and fountain, lyrically in tune with the structured display.

Athelhampton Gardems Staircase Photo © Alice Joyce

Great English Gardens .. on Amazon

Athelhampton Great Court Fountain Photo © Alice Joyce

Tour the beautifully renovated manor house; wander through the vivid garden oasis; and discover a vast parkland, where a River Walk hugs the River Piddle! And I’ve only touched upon the picturesque delights of Athelhampton: the Yew Walk to the Dovecote; the Octagonal Cloister Garden;  the White Garden; and Rose Garden. Thomas Hardy is known to have written poetry  set at Athelhampton. Another bit of history that permeates the estate’s ancestral grounds.

Thinking of traveling to Britain, whether armchair travel or the real thing, you might be interested in perusing a copy of…

Gardens of the National Trust.

Athelhampton Gardens Photo © Alice Joyce

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England

Great Dixter - Legacy of Christopher Lloyd

One of England’s most celebrated gardens, Great Dixter dates to 1220, a pedigree that is both impressive and historic, while the property’s magnificent Great Hall traces back to the 15th century.

Great Dixter  Sunk Garden Tulips  © Alice Joyce

Son of Nathaniel and Daisy – who acquired the property in 1910, Dixter’s resident Dean of British Gardening, Christopher Lloyd passed away at age 85, yet the legacy of his plantsmanship, and status as opinionated provocateur remains ever present.

Great Dixter Spring  © Alice Joyce

Lutyens-designed Stone Steps
Lloyd’s absence was a bittersweet aspect of my May visit to the garden, as I recalled the last time I toured the landscape in Lloyd’s company, soaking up each word he uttered as we moved through the  renowned yew-hedged rooms, topiary lawn, meadow and sunk garden.

Christopher Lloyd Great Dixter Photo © Alice Joyce

Christopher Lloyd photographed on a previous visit.

Great Dixter comprises a wealth of gardenscapes that surround the main house, oast house, and barn buildings that architect Edwin Lutyens worked his magic upon. Lutyens achieved a seamless integration, for instance, of the ‘Old House, Benenden,’ which he had dismantled, and then incorporated as an addition to the original Dixter home.

Lloyd’s horticultural acumen shines throughout the gardens in innovative and brilliant plant marriages. I reveled in springtime displays where wildflowers romped through grassy meadows, and tulips brightened every vista. The renown of Great Dixter is predicated on the sumptuous plantings forming a sublime partnership with Lutyen’s Arts & Crafts hardscape: a framework distinguished by warm brick walls embellished with roofing tiles, and the unmistakable semi-circular stone steps. Entirely at one with the architecture of the buildings.

Great Dixter Container Arrangement Photo © Alice Joyce

Quite a bit of work was ongoing during my May sojourn: Scaffolding covered the front of the house, and the famed exotic garden was not camera-ready. You might enjoy perusing Christo’s thoughts on designing with exoticism in mind, set forth in his last book, published by Timber Press: Exotic Planting for Adventurous Gardeners.

                  Great Dixter Springtime © Alice Joyce

Click the ‘England‘ tab under Topics on the home page to read a range of features on garden touring, from the Chelsea Flower Show to Mapperton, Altherhampton, and a host of alluring settings from my sojourns to Britain.

Great Dixter Meadow  © Alice Joyce

If you’d like to read more about the history and areas of design associated with Arts & Crafts Movement, I recommend a beautifully produced book:  In Harmony With Nature, by Rick Darke.

Great Dixter Topiary  © Alice Joyce

© Alice Joyce

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