A fitting ending, in my mind, to the Best of English Gardens Tour was a visit to Great Dixter, the garden of the late Christopher Lloyd, now overseen by his Head Gardener, Fergus Garrett. Great Dixter was my personal favorite. It has inspired me in my own private garden and most notably at the Boccelli Garden, a mixed border modeled after succession planting style of the Long Border at Great Dixter.
Last year, simple English cow’s parsley thread itself through the borders. This year the red poppy, Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird' seemed to be a unifying element throughout the gardens in late May.
The entrance to the garden is a meadow rather than the compulsory perfect lawn. It often surprises, and sometimes startles, visitors who often object to its apparent untidiness. By the end of the tour, most visitors have gotten over this unusual, but ecologically forward-thinking, approach to the front lawn.
The combination of potted plants aound the Porch are changing constantly just like the plants in the garden.
The pink flowers of Geranium manderense were the crown jewel of the planting this year. Geranium manderense is monocarpic; the plant dies after it finishes flowering.
Potted plants are also displayed in the Wall Garden.
The vertical spires of this red lupine echoed the 'Ladybird' poppies nicely here.
The combinations in the Barn garden were fresh and exciting.
Again, the 'Ladybird' poppy, this time with and Gladilus byzantinus; a clashing combination which is classic Christopher lloyd.
The Peacock Topiary Garden seemed fuller than I remembered it in previous years.
Hidcote, Sissinghurt and Great Dixter all rely on hedges and walls as a backdrop to the borders. I know that I prefer strong bones, or structure, in a garden. The contrast of architecture (green, stone or brick) and fluffy and frothy plantings have endless permutations that are pleasing to me. But its Great Dixter's exuberance and constant creativity; sometimes following convention, often defying rules, that gives me the courage to constantly keep growing, experimenting and learning. What more can I want from a garden?
Sissinghurst, Barnsley House and Great Dixter; you've certainly provided us with the highlights of probably the best gardens England has -- and the the ones I'd most love to visit someday myself. Thanks so much for allowing us to tag along virtually, and for the lovely photos. -Beth
ReplyDeleteThanks, Beth. They are quintessential English gardens. I joy to visit over and over again.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Michael for a current look at Great Dixter, which I haven't seen in almost 30 years. I can't say I'm taken by the screaming reds and oranges (though I'm favoring more orange in my own garden), but I know Dixter changes several times a season. It's still a sentimental favorite. Gardens Illustrated just put out a podcast of Fergus Garrett and Dan Pearson in conversation with Anna Pavord. It's very interesting to me to have heard Fergus talking about Dixter just before seeing your post.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up about the podcast, James. I was in London that day, but unfortunately missed the conversation. I have heard them both speak before, but never together. The reds felt perfect to me after a long winter in NH.
ReplyDeleteI defer judgement. Seeing the garden in person is very different from looking at photographs. I may well like the colors if I were actually there.
ReplyDeleteJames, an intense red like that isn't everyone's cup of tea in person or in photos but I think you would appreciate the spirit of what is happening at Great Dixter. One nice characteristic of a red like that, is that it makes the eye move throughout the garden or in the case of the Long Border and Wall Border along the border.
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DeleteMaybe I'm not the only person who went 'ouch!' then, James. But in many pictures it was not so much the colours as the restless chaos of form and shape, looking as if they'd been flung together and then flung at us. The porch, I think, especially.
ReplyDeleteHaving mentioned the idea of choosing one thing in a garden view to blow up, I think making that choice amongst these plants (the structure of the garden is something else..) would be an almighty challenge...
I like the temporary pot displays at Great Dixter, Anne. I think of them as installation art. A chance to experiment and be playful and learn about color, texture and scale. The porch pot display, no matter how chaotic, almost always works for me when taken in context of the house and the calm backdrop of the yews flanking the porch.
DeleteThanks for all of your English posts, I enjoyed looking at them. I have been to two of them, but enjoyed seeing them again through your eyes.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Les. It was my please then and now.
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