New Owners for East Lambrook Manor Gardens

On By Bill Hodgson

Alison and Andrew Johnson Take the Helm of Iconic English Cottage Garden

EAST LAMBROOK, SOMERSET — East Lambrook Manor Gardens, one of England’s most treasured cottage gardens and the spiritual home of the English cottage gardening style created by Margery Fish, is delighted to announce its new owners, Alison and Andrew Johnson.

Originally from Cheshire and recently relocated from Seattle, USA, the Johnsons bring with them a wealth of horticultural experience and a deep love of traditional English gardens. With decades of gardening creation and restoration expertise between them, Alison and Andrew are committed to preserving the unique character of East Lambrook while sensitively restoring and enhancing areas of the garden.

“We are incredibly honoured to become the new custodians of this historic and magical place,” said Alison Johnson. “East Lambrook Manor Gardens is a living work of art and we feel a great responsibility to carry forward the legacy of Margery Fish.”

The Johnsons’ plans include careful restoration of historic plantings, expansion of the garden’s borders in keeping with Margery’s design ethos, and the development of new areas that complement the existing style and spirit of the garden.

Andrew Johnson added, “Our vision is to gently evolve the garden, maintaining its integrity while allowing it to flourish into the future. We’re excited to welcome both long-time admirers and new visitors.”

Opening days and hours remain unchanged, and the gardens will continue to be open to the public as usual. Garden lovers can still enjoy the tranquil pathways, rare and historic plants, and the atmosphere that has made East Lambrook a beloved destination for generations.

For more information, please visit: www.eastlambrook.com

Media Contact:

Email: Alison@eastlambrook.com

Phone: 07835269165

Booking Reminder for Members – 17th July

On By Bill Hodgson

If you fancy a trip to see two fabulous gardens, now is the time to book (details at the bottom)

Thursday 17th July

Self drive visits to Honeyhurst Farm, Rodney Stoke and Babbs Farm,
Highbridge

Honeyhurst Farm Rodney Stoke near Cheddar (NGS page)

We will meet at 11:00 at Honeyhurst Farm which is a 2-3 acre part walled rural garden with a babbling brook and 4 acre cider orchard with splendid views.

The garden has specimen hollies, copper beach, paulownia, yew and poplar. There are mixed informal shrub and perennial beds with many unusual plants. 

We will be offered tea/coffee and biscuits during our visit.

Babbs Farm near Highbridge (NGS page)

We will then visit Babbs Farm at 14:00, a 1.5 acre plantsman’s garden on the Somerset levels, which has been gradually created out of fields surrounding old farmhouse over last 30 years and still being developed.

Trees, shrubs and herbaceous perennials planted for an eye for their form and shape in big flowing borders. The many unusual salvias are the highlight for this garden.

We will be offered tea and cake whilst at Babbs Farm

This trip must be pre-booked with Penny Berry via email: p.berry487@btinternet.com or phone: 01278 662720.  The booking form is available here.

The HPS Somerset Group Summer Plant Fair

On By Bill Hodgson

Saturday 14th of June

Batcombe House, Gold Hill, Batcombe, Shepton Mallet, BA4 6HF
12 midday – 5.00pm
Entry £7.50 (includes entry to the garden)
The summer fair is a vividly colourful event, with summer-flowering perennials in full bloom on every stall, making it easy to imagine how they might look in your own garden.  Batcombe House is a wonderful venue for the event. Don’t miss this opportunity to fill those gaps in your borders with something really special!

HPS (Somerset Group) Summer Plant Fair at Batcombe House, near Shepton Mallet – 14 June 2025

On By Bill Hodgson

We have the following wonderful nurseries joining us for our Summer Plant Fair at Batcombe House, Shepton Mallet, Somerset, BA4 6HF on Saturday 14 June from 12.00 to 5.00pm (garden open until 5.30pm). 

  • Biocentric Plants – Tom Nielsen
  • CB Plants – Catherine Bond
  • Carnivorous Plants and Succulents – Ogie Placido
  • Elworthy Cottage – Mike & Jenny Spiller  
  • Heartsease Plants – Janine Thompson
  • In Clover – Clare Turner
  • Native Spaces – Vickie Bodie 
  • Pennard Plants – Chris Smith
  • Phoenix Perennial Plants – Marina Christopher
  • Plant Wild/Blooming Wild – Lindsay and Steven Lister
  • Special Plants – Derry Watkins
  • Triffids – Jackie Williams
  • Tynings Climbers – Jane and Toni

The garden is at its zenith in June, with the roses and herbaceous plants at their peak. What more could you want than a beautiful garden to visit and a wide range of interesting and unusual plants available to buy?

There is free parking is nearby and there will be refreshments available to purchase. Purchase your entry tickets on the gate.

OPEN GARDEN

On By Bill Hodgson

Ann and Graham Salmon will be opening their garden, Springdale in Smeatharpe EX14 9RF on the afternoons of the 17th and 18th of May in aid of Hospiscare from 2-5pm. Tea and coffee will be available and parking is at the Village Hall or an adjacent field.

A 2 acre damp acid garden planted with mature shrubs, trees and perennials. There are 4 main greenhouses with a mixture of bulbs and more tender plants including cacti and succulents. There is also a small lake with water lilies and a collection of auriculas alongside the barn, whilst areas of lawn are allowed to grow uncut to encourage wildlife.

May Update – looking forward to June

On By Bill Hodgson

Our spring lecture programme has now come to a close and we are well and truly into the season of plant fairs and garden visits. Our April Plant Sale at West Monkton Village Hall once again proved to be very popular and made a total of £428.10 for group funds. I have already written to thank all of our wonderful volunteers for their help on the day but would like to record this again, more publicly. We cannot run these fundraising events without help from members. Please think about volunteering when the call goes out.

Members enjoyed a drive into Devon to visit the gardens of Regency House, Hemyock and Kia-Ora, Cullompton on 7 May. With perfect weather we all enjoyed a guided tour of the former, including a wonderful walled garden full of shrubs and herbaceous perennials, a lake and various interesting shrubs and trees in the wider garden, plus a superb wisteria growing on the rear wall of the house. This was followed by a stroll around the ten acres of Kia-Ora which featured several ponds, large and small, and some interesting mature shrubs and trees including a fine cercis. We also enjoyed meeting the owner’s friendly peacock but less so her not so friendly black swan!

We already have a virtually full rota of helpers on our plant stall at our next Plant Fair at Batcombe House near Shepton Mallet on 14 June which is great news, but if you would like to help on the gate for an hour or two please let me know. The gardens at Batcombe House should be looking superb at the time of the Fair and our volunteers get free entry to see them. We will also need lots of plant donations to sell on our plant stall so please think about potting up a few plants now. The Fair runs from 12 noon until 5.00pm and entry for anyone not volunteering to help is £8.00 (proceeds to NGS). Please would you print off one or two of the attached flyers or posters and display them locally.

A4 Version:

HPS_Plant_Fair_June_2025_v0-2Download

A5 version:

HPS_Plant_Fair_June_2025_v0-2_2xA5Download

On Wednesday 25 June we have a coach trip to Veddw House, Devauden and Mounton House, near Chepstow. Places are limited to 30 and we have already reached that many bookings. However, we already have one cancellation and it is always possible that there may be others, so please get in touch with Penny (whose contact details are on the “Programme” page of our website www.somersethps.com ) if you are interested in going. “Reserves” will be contacted in order of application. It promises to be an excellent visit to two gardens that are not regularly open to the public. More details can be found on the website.

For our final June event, we have our annual member social event, the Plant Swap, on Sunday 29 June starting at 2.00pm. This popular members’ only event takes places this year in Street and our host will be Kay Savage. The format of the event is arrive, view the garden, have refreshments and cake and then swap plants with fellow members. There is a small charge of £5 for this event, but if you offer to bring a cake along this may be in lieu of payment. We shall only need four cakes as numbers will be limited to a maximum of 24 so please contact Penny to book your place (and cake!) as soon as possible. So that a variety of cakes is available, please state what type of cake you wish to offer. The booking fee may be paid on the day or by bank transfer in advance. As well as some plants to swap, you will need to bring a chair. More details regarding the venue will be provided on booking.

Finally, a reminder to book your places on our two other garden visits for 2025, the self drive to Honeyhurst Farm and Babbs Farm on Thursday 17 July and our final coach trip of the year to Knoll Gardens, Wimbourne and Compton Acres near Poole on Tuesday 9 September.