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Coleton Fishacre (Devon, England)

Coleton Fishacre was in my top 5 gardens on the tour. This Arts & Crafts style house and garden was the country home of  Rupert D'Oyly Carte and his wife Lady Dorothy Carte.   He was the well-known theater owner (The Savoy) and producer (Gilbert & Sullivan).  They spotted the property from their yacht and thought it would be a great spot for a country home and garden. Ah, to have that much money... They commissioned Oswald Milne, a former student of Edward Lutyens to design the house. Both Rupert and Lady Dorothy were interested in gardening but it was Lady Dorothy who mainly planted the garden, filling it with exotic and tender plants that survived with the influence of the Gulf stream. They employed six full-time gardeners! I often wonder if people who have that much money are really able to enjoy a property like this and actually live in it?  Their tenure here wasn't that long (a dozen years or so), although Dorothy lived here full-time in the late 19...
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Pink Dogwood


The pink dogwood (variety unknown) is the largest tree in the garden. I found a photo of how it looked when we first moved in. It was smaller than I remembered -

2016

So it has grown quite a lot in five years. There are so many beautiful varieties on the market now and we have quite a lot of them at the nursery where I work. The owners recently planted several along the parking lot last year. I was just noticing today how beautiful 'Cherokee Chief' is and wished that I had taken a photo.

Our tree brings us lots of pleasure and it is always a treat when it blooms.



Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

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Comments

  1. chavlinessApril 24, 2021 at 7:21 AM

    Look at all that grass in 2016... I'm sure not even you could imaging the garden you've created. I love Dogwoods, their blooms make me think of butterflies.

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  2. Hoover BooApril 24, 2021 at 12:11 PM

    How long does the flora show last on Dogwoods? It's magnificent.

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  3. julesApril 24, 2021 at 1:00 PM

    Here in Georgia dogwoods have taken a huge hit. There numbers are not what they were. I have heard this is due to anthracnose, but I’m not sure. Glad to know you don’t seem to be a set up for fungus, even in your moist climate.

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  4. Kris PetersonApril 24, 2021 at 1:08 PM

    It's a gorgeous thing! And sadly something that won't grow in my climate.

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  5. CanadianGardenJoyApril 25, 2021 at 4:15 PM

    I desperately tried to plant a dogwood after I have yearned for one for so long. I was entranced by those gorgeous flowers .. I was deep into dogwood flower ENVY .. but alas the one I tried was diseased as were the whole shipment ... I was just too defeated to try again, but I so appreciate seeing other gardeners ! Thank you ;-)

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  6. SwimrayApril 30, 2021 at 5:58 PM

    Powdery mildew magnet here in my Virginia yard, especially when summer hits. But they hang on and just don't grow as fast year to year.

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