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Agatha Christie's Greenway (Devon, England) - The House

I can think of two places that we visited where I enjoyed the house more than the gardens. The first was Greenway, not for the house itself, which was surprisingly small and cramped, but for the history behind it and the fascinating mementos on display. Agatha Christie and her husband Max Mallowan were enthusiastic collectors. You can see their collections on display throughout the house - European and Oriental ceramics, pottery, African tribal masks, Egyptian artifacts, Tunbridge ware, china, trinkets, and books. The Morning Room has a portrait of Agatha Christie as a child and her doll Rosie, sitting in a chair - The Drawing Room was where the family would gather in the evenings. Christie would entertain guests by reading chapters from manuscripts of her latest books.  Agatha Christie's bedroom. Max always slept on a smaller portable traveling cot (you can see part of it in the foreground). It was his favorite bed and he carried it with him on all of his archaeological travels. N...
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More Open Gardens: Amato, DeNoyer & Lewis

Three more gardens that we toured on the HPSO Open Gardens a few weeks ago -

 Ann Amato is a plant collector with many unique plants packed into her small garden near Mt. Taybor. She has a fabulous courtyard area in back where she relaxes and entertains. A canopy made from four willow trees rises around the table and creates a wonderful sanctuary. I can just imagine this space at night when the lights in the trees are illuminating the area. Enchanting!






After visiting the Babbit garden and Ann's garden, we headed to a group of three neighbors who all have lovely gardens next to each other. By the time we arrived, it was raining steadily and as we approached the garden of Mary DeNoyer, it was coming a downpour. Despite that, and the fact that Michael was becoming grumpier by the minute, I trudged onward. This was a beautifully designed garden and I was unhappy that I could not spend more time there.

Along the front walk leading up to the house. The borders were filled with spectacular plants.

A rose covered archway leads to the back garden.

Stepping through the archway - a pathway with a large container planted with Cornus controversa 'Variegata' (aka The Wedding Cake Dogwood).


The pathway leads around to a patio area. There were many people at the garden so it was difficult to get photos. 


Across the street is an equally impressive garden, the Lewis garden. The rain was coming down heavier so I had to rush through. I did get a chance to talk with the very nice owner. I would love to get back and see these gardens again, on a dryer day!

I loved the hardscaping in this garden, particularly the stone pathways and steps. 





More gardens on the way! If you haven't visited any of the gardens on the HPSO Open Gardens Tour, I encourage you to do so. It is a wonderful opportunity to see what creative gardeners in the area have accomplished.

 Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. Barbara H.June 20, 2018 at 10:05 AM

    Beautiful gardens, Phillip, thanks for taking us along. Like you, I want to see more.

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  2. GRACE PETERSONJune 20, 2018 at 2:38 PM

    Beautiful gardens. The rain was nice but it could have waited until night when we were sleeping. Sheesh! :)

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  3. Lisa at GreenbowJune 20, 2018 at 5:20 PM

    The yellow foliage sure shows up during a downpour. All of these gardens have spectacular plants. I am having climbing rose envy right now. Lovely. I can't wait to see more. Tell Michael he is a good soldier. Hang in there.

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  4. AaronJune 22, 2018 at 6:14 AM

    Open garden days are awesome. We went to a couple when we first moved to Nashville, but sadly the events seem to have ceased in the past ~ 5 years...

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  5. chavlinessJune 25, 2018 at 10:50 AM

    I loved the succulent collection on the shelf of the first garden, and the shady plant area by the stone steps of the second. Garden visits this time of year are so inspiring !

    ReplyDelete
  6. outlawgardenerJune 26, 2018 at 7:05 AM

    More fabulous gardens! I'm hoping that once school is out for the summer, I'll have a bit more time to visit open gardens in our area.

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