Skip to main content

Featured

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...
2 comments
Read more
Labels

Visiting Shari & John's Garden Again


It was in the fall of 2020 that I last saw Shari McDonald and John Hembroff's garden. I can't believe that was 2 1/2 years ago but, as they say, time flies when you're having fun (actually these days I think time flies no matter what mood you're in).

Shari said they had some damage during the winter. A tree fell in the front garden and while it didn't do a lot of damage, it did open up more space.




I absolutely love this garden and every time I see it, I feel the need to go home and start ripping everything out in our overstuffed garden and start over. It is so well designed and tranquil, truly a place to retreat from the noise and bustle of everyday life.

I ask myself how I would adjust to a shade garden. I know I would miss flowers, especially roses, but I also know that I prefer shade over sun.  

After entering, you are surrounded by plants and huge rocks. After walking a short distance down a flagstone pathway, you turn around and look back to this view -



To the right is a large Koi pond and waterfall -









Going around to the back garden reveals more treasures. This is a small garden but Shari has found room for a large amount of choice plants.


Hydrangea aspera

I forgot to ask Shari but I'm pretty sure the large variegated rhododendron is Rhododendron ponitcum 'Variegatum'. It has a beautiful purple bloom. The smaller rhododendron at the foot is 'Ebony Pearl' -




Back around to the front - this was taken along the side of the garden by the street - 


One more closer look at that inviting entrance -


Thanks again Shari and John - your garden is a treasure!


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
Email Post
Labels:

Comments

  1. AnonymousMay 31, 2023 at 7:50 AM

    I went back to see the first post, from fall of 2020. I couldn't pick which season shows this magnificent garden best: it is spectacular in both, and I also love shade gardens.
    Photo 7 is a tapestry in green. I love it.
    Chavli

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kris PetersonMay 31, 2023 at 10:21 AM

    It's a beautiful and very serene garden. I could almost feel my blood pressure falling.

    ReplyDelete
  3. tz_gardenJune 3, 2023 at 8:15 AM

    What a beautiful garden, if I walked by that entrance I would want to peek inside!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment