Dirt Therapy

After seeing the lofty displays of grandeur at Knighshayes , it was a refreshing change of pace to visit the more unaffected garden of Westbrook. Located in the village of West Bradley, this is the home and garden of Keith Anderson and David Mendel. Keith is a garden designer (he once worked for Rosemary Verey) and David is a painter. Their combined talents are on display here in this lush, romantic garden. The front of the house features island beds of perennials within a circular gravel driveway. In the back and along the side of the house are patio areas and a walled garden with potted plants - Venturing further back from the house are lawn areas, a partially-mown meadow, and old roses and perennials planted among clipped boxwood and lovely pruned pear trees.   I don't recall the story about this dogwood tree with the "Gertrude" sign - The property is surrounded by apple orchards and pastures. Keith and David maintain two orchards, filled with old-variety apples. In an...

After strolling through the gardens, we go inside the extraordinary Gothic revival house. The house was designed by William Burges but the Heathcoat-Amory family rejected many of his lavish interior plans because of the expense. J.D. Grace and other architects completed the house as it is today. The Entrance Porch The Great Hall The Great Hall The Library I think the ceilings impressed me the most. Almost every room had a unique one - The Boudoir Bedroom with wall frieze decoration A 17th century linen press Ornate Pottery The embroidered bedspread on the mahogany four-poster bed in The Bedroom The Billiard Room Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

We saw some magnificent houses during the England trip. The one instance where I enjoyed the house more than the gardens was Knightshayes (which I have a terrible tendency to refer to as Nightshades ). Touring this house was a thrilling experience for me and I will share interior photos in the next post. The gardens were certainly nothing to sneeze at - After parking, you enter the Stables, which I first thought was the actual house - But no, you walk down a curving road about 1/4 of a mile and as you round a bend, there is the main house - The Gothic-style house was designed by William Burges for the Heathcoat-Amory family, whose wealth stemmed from lace production. They owned most of the land and manufacturing sites in the town of Tiverton. John Heathcoat-Amory chose the Knightshayes location because it overlooked his factory in the Exe valley below. If you are wondering where the name Knightshayes comes from (as I was), I found this meaning:  This name likely has Old English or...