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Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens (Weymouth, England)

After seeing a string of English-style gardens, Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens provided a welcome change of pace. Located in a sheltered woodland on the Jurassic Coast, this 30-acre garden is filled with rare semi-tropical plants.   As we entered, we were greeted by this little guy (a golden pheasant) - The entry area included a restaurant with a wrap-around porch and a gift shop - Entering the main gardens - This hill was quite a trek - I was out of breath when I reached the top. Once there, you get an overlook with a view of the ocean - This property was once home to a castle that was once a monastery. This is how it looked in 1890 - The gardens were developed by the Fox-Strangways family. Most notably, William Fox-Strangways, 4th Earl of Ilchester, was a diplomat and botanist, who introduced many exotic species to the garden. The genus Photinia stranvaesia was named after him.  In 1899, Lady Ilchester printed a catalog which documented over 5,000 plants in the garden....
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Iford Manor (Part 2)


I knew that Iford Manor was my kind of garden when I saw the statue of "Dying Gaul" perched on top of a wall. We can't afford one for our garden but we do have a little version inside the house -


The garden continues uphill with areas that are naturalized as well as manicured  - 




A very theatrical area with some of the statuary from Peto's travels -










Peto loved curved benches. In addition to Italian gardens, he was influenced by the Arts & Crafts movement. Some think that his love of curved benches came from the paintings of Lawrence Alma-Tadema. Some copies of his works were found in Peto's files -


"Expectations" by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema

Small buildings also dotted the landscape -


The largest building was the cloister which housed more of his classical treasures -



There is even a Japanese garden -


Various pathways and woodland trails led to a road above the gardens. This set of stairs was roped off, but there were more user-friendly avenues available -


Finally, heading back down toward the house -



Heading back, I discovered that I was all alone. It was so quiet - paradise! I was the last person in the garden. Everyone else had gathered at the cafe near the exit -


Note - Troy Scott Smith, head gardener at Sissinghurst, worked at Iford Manor for several years. He will be speaking at HPSO on Sunday, September 21st. Tickets are available on the HPSO website. 

(Visited May 9, 2025)

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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  1. Kris PetersonAugust 24, 2025 at 7:19 AM

    I thought the woman in the 15th photo was a statue at first. She couldn't have been posed more perfectly to fit into that landscape. Great photo!

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    1. Phillip OliverAugust 24, 2025 at 7:29 AM

      Kris, that is actually a painting by Lawrence Alma-Tadema that influenced Peto. His paintings do look realistic!

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  2. AnonymousAugust 25, 2025 at 7:21 AM

    I visited Iford manor last July. Other than the name, it's the statue of the Dying Gaul that triggered my memory. Your tour of the garden seems to have been more extensive (was it guided?) because not much else looks familiar. I do recall the bridge and seeing the sweet Santa Barbara daisies growing in the rocks along the road everywhere I looked.
    Chavli

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    1. Phillip OliverAugust 25, 2025 at 11:23 AM

      I was with a group but the tour was not guided. We walked around at our own leisure.

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  3. tz_gardenAugust 25, 2025 at 7:57 AM

    Really lovely, it all looks like a painting. Photo #3 makes me wish I was walking on the path right now.

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