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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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The Angle of the Sun Says Spring Is On The Way


There comes a time every year when I glance out the front door and notice the early morning sun shining through the orange sedge. Since our house faces north, this area is shaded during most of the winter months. At this point, the sun has traveled far enough to the north to begin shining on the north side of the house. We can also tell a difference by the way it comes through our living room windows. 

This is Orange New Zealand Sedge (Carex testacea), boxwood and the rose 'Lady Emma Hamilton'.

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

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  1. Kris PetersonMarch 24, 2021 at 1:11 PM

    I'm glad spring is on its way in your area, Phillip. I wish Carex testacea performed as well in my garden as it is has in yours. I can probably say the same thing about 'Lady Emma Hamilton', which may get an eviction notice here if she doesn't shape up this year.

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    1. Phillip OliverMarch 24, 2021 at 8:24 PM

      Kris, 'Lady Emma Hamilton' can be problematic. Blackspot was on it although I managed to get it under control. It isn't the most carefree Austin rose.

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  2. chavlinessMarch 25, 2021 at 7:52 AM

    As the garden (and I) mature, I look for hassle free plants that require less work to maintain. The orange sage became my go-to and most favorite ornamental grass: little clean-up is needed, very manageable reseeding, and unless we go through a particularly nasty winter it looks good and provide color all year. Your photo demonstrates my point perfectly!

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  3. Hoover BooMarch 28, 2021 at 1:45 PM

    That is a nice combo, C. testacea and Lady Emma. I have the Carex with Abutilon 'Victor Reiter' and Cuphea 'Vermillionaire'--different oranges seem to play nicely together.

    I agree with chavliness--that carex gives a lot for very little effort.

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  4. RobinLApril 3, 2021 at 4:51 PM

    This photo is really eye catching, and of course we’re all glad to have spring arriving!

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