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The Garden House (Devon, England)

The destinations are beginning to blur but looking at the tour guide booklet, I see that we are now in Plymouth. Today, we visited two gardens designed by Keith Wiley.  The first is The Garden House , where Wiley worked as Head Gardener for 25 years (from 1978-2003). The 10-acre estate was purchased in the 1940s by former Eton schoolmaster Lionel Fortescue and his wife Katherine. It was formerly home to the  vicars of Buckland Monachronum. The Fortescue's renovated the gardens and ran a market garden business and raised cattle.  The remains of some of the original buildings in the vicarage still stand in the garden and serve as a romantic backdrop in the Walled Garden - I loved the way they had massed ferns together. Just stunning! Surrounding the walled garden and venturing out away from the house are more naturalistic plantings  - Today, the head gardener is Nick Haworth, who was previously head gardener at Greenway , which we visited earlier.  Keith Wiley lef...
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A host of golden daffodils



I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils,
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.



Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretch'd in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.



The waves beside them danced, but they
Outdid the sparkling waves in glee:—
A poet could not but be gay
In such a jocund company!
I gazed, and gazed, but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:



For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
-William Wordsworth







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  1. AnonymousFebruary 18, 2009 at 4:16 PM

    Beautiful. You're a very talented photographer. I bet you've won tons of awards. The poem warmed my heart. Thanks for sharing. We all need a little spring right now.

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  2. UnknownFebruary 18, 2009 at 4:16 PM

    And a splendid host of daffodils indeed, Phillip. I had to learn that poem in grade 4, many eons ago, and am surprised that I remember 90 percent of it.

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  3. KerriFebruary 18, 2009 at 6:36 PM

    Such glorious daffodils! And your photos are beautiful.
    The poem is a favorite of mine. My father loved it and used to recite it to me.
    I posted it with my daffodils last spring :)

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  4. AnonymousFebruary 18, 2009 at 6:41 PM

    I got a bit sentimental reading it. There is something about those first flowers in the Spring that bring so much happiness to my heart. Beautiful photos.

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  5. RuralityFebruary 18, 2009 at 7:14 PM

    Cool beans! That first one is especially beautiful.

    Oh BTW, I have been informed that the cherry tree on my blog this morning is actually a Japanese Apricot. No wonder it's earlier than all the other cherries, LOL.

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  6. GailFebruary 18, 2009 at 8:20 PM

    Phillip, Your daffodil photos are stellar and they compliment the poem beautifully! Have a good Thursday! gail

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  7. Chandramouli SFebruary 18, 2009 at 8:53 PM

    I envy your photography skills. Awesome ones and a lovely poem.

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  8. RandyFebruary 19, 2009 at 5:00 AM

    Phillip,
    Those are abosolutely incredible photos! I particularly like the first one! Good job--Randy

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  9. Roses and LilacsFebruary 19, 2009 at 6:39 AM

    Nothing speaks to me of spring more than daffodils. Mine are many weeks away but thank you for sharing yours.
    Marnie

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  10. sweetbayFebruary 19, 2009 at 7:38 AM

    Beautiful photographs. It'll be at least 2 more weeks before our daffodils are out in full force here.

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  11. Chandramouli SFebruary 19, 2009 at 10:44 AM

    BTW, here's a small something for you:
    http://inartliesmyheart.blogspot.com/2009/02/foundation-of-creation.html

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  12. AnonymousFebruary 19, 2009 at 2:57 PM

    Hi Phillip, wonderful wonderful wonderful. This is what spring is about. All the photos are gorgeous, well done and thank you. Our first daff opened today, very cold, sunny and windy. So much to look forward to.
    Frances

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  13. AnonymousFebruary 20, 2009 at 7:29 AM

    Phillip, this is one of my very favorite poems, and your daffodils illustrate it so well.

    Jan
    Always Growing

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  14. AnonymousFebruary 20, 2009 at 7:47 AM

    your photography is beautiful - thank you for sharing!

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  15. JanFebruary 20, 2009 at 5:50 PM

    I've always enjoyed that poem-and have quoted it on a page in my blog, too. You have taken some superb photos here! This is a lovely post:)

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  16. AnonymousFebruary 21, 2009 at 8:15 AM

    The daffodils are out in coastal South Carolina too, at least the earlier ones. I really like your images of the flowers just before they open fully - sometimes I think I like them best.

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  17. KC MO Garden GuyFebruary 26, 2009 at 8:18 AM

    Beautiful!! NOthing says spring like daffodils!

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  18. Lisa at GreenbowMarch 2, 2009 at 5:16 AM

    Thank you so much for bringing this poem to us. Your photos go with it perfectly.

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  19. AnonymousApril 4, 2009 at 4:22 PM

    The poem and pictures are sublime. Thank goodness daffodils never need to be "bailed out." They are hearty souls who can live 100+ years because they have few natural enemies. I always find it a paradox that pansies are hearty enough to withstand cold temperatures, and daffodils can go on forever, while man made things always have a certain shelf life.
    Renee Langmuir 4/4/09

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