Our third day was a busy one as we left our first hotel in Bath and traveled to Wells. There were several stops along the way, the first being Special Plants Nursery in Chippenham, England. It was a warm day.
The nursery is owned by former Oregonian Derry Watkins, who moved to England decades ago when she married an Englishman. She is a plant collector and has traveled all over the world, her favorite place being South Africa.
That is Derry in the above photos talking to our group. The house and garden are located on a steep hill with idyllic countryside surrounding it. She says the garden was designed by her architect husband and she has filled it with her favorite plants, mostly tender perennials that she has collected from her plant-hunting expeditions.
Most of the beds are terraced and many plants are grown in gravel.
The garden is also enhanced with some striking ornaments -
Lower island beds proceed downhill -
A bog garden -
At the bottom of the property is a woodland walk.
The tranquil surrounding countryside -
I was impressed by her system of labeling plants for visitors. Each island bed was adorned with a small metal sculpture of a dancing lady holding a number. A hand-out detailed the numbered sections and listed plants that were blooming in that particular section. It was very effective.
Derry Watkins was a charming host and answered all our questions and let us shop her seeds. I am terribly inept with seeds but I ended up purchasing lunaria 'Corfu Blue' seeds (it was blooming throughout the garden and so spectacular). I also got some cleome and verbena seeds.
(Visited May 9, 2025)
Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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