The Essex HPS Group is planning a four day coach trip for next year, and plan to come to the west country in early June, with Hestercombe and Iford Manor among their destinations.
Their members (like ours!) are much more keen on visiting private gardens, partly because the scale is closer to their own, and partly in the hope of buying rare and interesting plants ridiculously cheaply.
Tom Fenton, who’s organising the trip, has asked if I could recommend any of Somerset Group’s members’ gardens, or others, that might fit that bill and would take a coachload (about 30) of plantaholics for a modest fee.
Group members have enjoyed a summer social and an afternoon of garden visits since our last Update was issued. Last month, around twenty members gathered in the garden of member Kate Harris near Wiveliscombe. We started by touring the garden which was beautifully terraced on a deceptively sloping site. Kate skilfully grows a wide range of interesting plants in thoughtfully designed borders, salvias being a particular favourite. The large and productive fruit and vegetable area was also most impressive. Following tea and cake we got down to the business of swapping plants and most people went home with some new treasure to add to their own garden.
This week a showery afternoon failed to stop members enjoying three gardens to the east of Wincanton. Our first stop was The Blooming Wild Nursery, specialising in herbaceous perennials, ornamental grasses and wild flowers, with a focus on attracting wildlife into gardens. The nursery has display gardens where many of the plants for sale can be seen growing.
Second stop was Forest Lodge where the group was given a relaxed tour of the gardens in the company of the three knowledgeable garden staff. The planting was carefully orchestrated with some areas featuring contrasting colours such as the blue, white and yellow beds around the immaculate circular lawn, and some with more complementary colours. The soft, cottage garden style areas sharply contrasted with the powerfully sleek and modern stainless steel obelisk and rill. On then to the wilder reaches of the garden which had a frightening amount of mare’s tail amongst the woodland style plantings and finally, via the large pond, to the beautiful specimen trees and shrubs, some almost reaching maturity but still quite a number of more recent plantings, including a beautiful calycanthus ‘Aphrodite’.
Our third garden visit took us to Gaspar Cottage where much of the garden was designed to take advantage of the views across the valley as a “borrowed landscape”. Planting around the house was largely colour themed with a striking “hot” bed featuring beautifully grown dahlias, alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’ and tall growing marigolds set around topiary. Elsewhere, planting featured softer pastel colours. Further away from the house shrubs and trees have been planted into the grass and there is a much more distinctly wild feel to that part of the garden.
Don’t forget that coming up on 21st September we have our 50/50 plant sale at the West Monkton Village Hall. If you wish to bring plants to sell they must have two identical labels in each pot with the name of the plant, seller’s name or initials and price on each one. One label will be removed upon sale of the plant by the person manning the stall and used to add up the value of the plants sold. so that 50% can be returned to the seller at the end of the meeting. Use pencil to write your labels and you can then easily reuse the labels returned to you. Plants can be brought to the stall from 9.30am and selling will start at 10.00am. Please bring your own bags and boxes to take your purchases home with you. If you would be able to help with selling plants please let me know.
After the plant sale the talk will begin. Sally Morgan will be telling us about “Controlling Pests and Diseases in the Organic Garden”. This year slugs have really been on the rampage in gardens so any help to control them would be very welcome!
Help Run Our Group
Finally, I should remind you that we are looking for a couple of folk to join our merry band on the committee from the AGM in November. Caroline is stepping down as Chairman after several years in the role and Hester wants to hand over the reins as Speaker Secretary.
The 2025 lecture programme has already been booked so if you take on this role you would have plenty of time to think about and book speakers for our 2026 programme. Of course, you will receive ideas and support from the rest of the committee and Hester will be on hand to answer any procedural questions you might have. The job could potentially be shared between a couple of people.
We also need someone to take on the Newsletter Editor’s role as there won’t be another until we have a volunteer.
Mike Vernoum needs two volunteers to help with tea and coffee, for each of the remaining 2024 meetings:
21st September
19th October
16th November
Please feel free to chat to the current role holders at the next lecture meeting if you want to know more.
The good news is that we have had a response to my request for a volunteer to organise the “Plant of the Month” competition at our monthly meetings. Jill Jones will be taking over from Helen Stickland.
A reminder of the Self drive visits to a nursery and 2 gardens near Wincanton
Thursday 12th September
Our final visits of 2024 are just over a week away and there are still a few places available. The self-drive day has a rather different format than our usual one, with 2 gardens in the afternoon after an optional visit to a nursery where we have been invited to picnic in their display garden.
The Blooming Wild nursery, as seen in our HPS nursery list, is just south of Wincanton and has been under new management since 2022. Steven and Lindsay Lister hold an enthusiasm for wild plants combined with naturalistic planting. They have a solid base in Horticulture and had been growing wildflowers as ‘PlantWild” but have now expanded into herbaceous perennials and Grasses. They are kindly offering us a 10% discount on purchases mae by HPS members on the day.
We then proceed a short distance down the road to the gardens at Forest Lodge just east of Wincanton at 2.00pm. This 3 acre mature country garden opens out to the surrounding farmland and landscape. One of the features that sets the garden apart is the amphitheatre effect of the concentric circles of terracing towards the South West which give stunning views across the Blackmoor Vale. The garden is on acidic greensand with a similar pH to nearby Stourhead Gardens and in addition to interesting perennials there is an enviable collection of ornamental trees. The garden plans are based loosely on some of the Arts & Crafts gardens created by Lutyens and Jekyll, with more formal borders around the house. We will be offered tea and cake at the end of our visit.
We then go just over the border into Wiltshire to Gasper Cottage just off the A303. This is a good contrast to Forest Lodge with its secluded country garden surrounding the classic thatched cottage. The garden extends to about 1.5 acres and also has glorious views. Thoughtful colour combinations have been developed in the different areas of the garden and there are luxurious plantings of dahlias, grasses, asters, cardoons and other late summer specialities. Many tender plants are also bedded out each year for that extra sizzle and wow factor. A perennial meadow hosts an orchard and a nascent forest garden with wildlife pond. The owner’s art studio is in a secret garden with exuberant planting and a sophisticated formal pond.
The charge is £22 per person. To book please contact Penny Berry p.berry487@btinternet.com or phone: 01278 662720. Penny deals strictly with bookings only, so if you have any queries about a trip or event, please contact Kate Harris at nunnington@aol.com
Kate Harris, Higher Nunnington Farm, Wiveliscombe TA4 2AE
Last month’s coach trip to south Wales was fairy well attended and members enjoyed the opportunity to visit High Glanau Manor and Wyndcliffe Court. A few photos from the day appear below – thank you to Anna Yates for providing them.
Booking for the plant swap event at Wiveliscombe on 18th August closes in a couple of days. There are only one or two places left so if you want to go and still haven’t booked, please get in touch with Penny as soon as possible.
Looking ahead to September, we have a self drive visit to Gaspar Cottage, Forest Lodge and the Blooming Wild Nursery coming up on the 12th. More details can be found on the Group’s website, www.somersethps.com. Again, make your booking with Penny please.
Our Saturday lecture programme resumes at West Monkton Village Hall on 21st September. We have Sally Morgan coming along to tell us about “Controlling Pests and Diseases in the Organic Garden”.
The lecture begins at 11.00am and is preceded by our popular annual 50/50 plant sale beginning at 10.00am.
Bring your surplus plants to sell to other members and guests. The Group keeps half the sales price and the other half is returned to you. Please put two identical labels in each pot with the name of the plant, the price and your name written on them. As one label is removed to enable the amount owed to each person to be easily added up, please use pencil on the labels so that they can be returned to you for reuse.
This month saw members of the Group visit Lower Bowden Manor and Edulis, a rare plants nursery, in Berkshire on 6 June.
Ro Fitzgerald has kindly written the following account of the trip:
“A smallish coach party of us set off into the (to me) unexplored region of the Thames Valley from a damp grey morning at home, but this dim start led to a remarkable day. I know little about the Home Counties, and approaching Lower Bowden Manor garden the landscape seemed frankly tame and over-tidied after Somerset. I was unprepared for the really stunningly original garden we found, and for the unusually interesting history of how the owners, Juliette and Robert Cox-Nicol, have come to create it.
After living in Paris, where Juliette was a respected garden designer, in 2016 they found this early 20C house near Pangbourne, surrounded by 7 acres of mature trees and shrubs in a state of complete neglect. To most of us this would have seemed impossible to cope with, but they could see what treasures were lurking under the scrub and brambles and have worked, and are still working, to develop a garden which manages to be both grandly stylish and intimate, and which delivers a surprise at every turn.
The basis of their style is the management of woody plants to reveal and emphasise shape, colour and structure, to ‘brush up’, to ‘cloud clip’, to place individuals strikingly in the wider habitat of the garden. A Eureka moment in my life was when Princess Sturdza’s garden, Le Vasterival, was first described to me, where every shrub and tree was managed to show trunk and branches clear of twiggy mess, and where the oriental principle of ma which honours space as much as solidity is fully used.
At Lower Bowden Juliette has used her own version of this principle to wonderful effect. I found her design of different areas both grand and playful, with details which inspired both beautiful and quirky ideas. Her signature features are ‘drums’ of different sizes using beech with a variety of leaf colours, and these occur with a multitude of balls, pyramids, and layered clouds. Robert was an excellent guide through the formal parts of the garden and the many intriguing corners including a pond and an orchard housing beautiful slate standing stones from Brittany. We were treated to refreshments and greeted by charming staff and small friendly dogs so it was altogether a memorably enjoyable visit.
The day continued well, sunny by lunchtime which we ate beside the Thames at Pangbourne Bridge where driver James managed to get us to within yards of the river, and then skilfully negotiated the extremely narrow approach to Paul Barney’s Edulis nursery which keeps its amazing rarities very far from the usual public gaze. I don’t much go for ‘fairyland’ comparisons, but have to for this magical collection of treasures.
Paul used to plant-hunt with Nick Macer of Pan Global Plants, and still supplies him with propagated rarities. A visit has the thrill of wild botany – plants are not priced and lined up like-with-like, so you have to examine each one, looking for a small division as larger pots are probably waiting to be divided.
My purchases were from both Paul’s rare stock (an obscure Podophyllum which is rarely listed) and from a much more homely but equally rarely seen range – a pot of Bowles’ mint because I must have everything which that hero selected, and an equally historic large-flowered chive selection called ‘Forescate’ which I’d once had many years ago from the wonderful former Four Seasons nursery.”
Click the images above to enlarge them.
Plant Fair at Batcombe House
On the 15th June our Summer Plant Fair was held within the superb gardens of Batcombe House, near Shepton Mallet, by kind permission of the owners, garden designer Libby Russell and her husband Alexander. Despite a couple of very light rain showers, the day was a great success and still drew a crowd of about 400 people who enjoyed the skilful planting of head gardener Tom Price, ate a lot of cake and went away with lots of plants.
My personal thanks go to everyone who volunteered to help on our plant stall or on the entrance table and those who brought plants along for us to sell. A considerable amount of money was raised for group funds. Please think about offering to help at one of our events next year – it’s actually fun!
Our next event is our coach trip to High Glanau Manor and Wyndcliffe Court in South Wales on Thursday 11 July. Details are available on the “Programme” page of the group’s website. There has been a very good response to this coach trip but there are still some places available. Please get in touch with Penny and book your place(s) as soon as possible.
Springdale, Smeatharpe EX14 9RF June15th and 16th from 2-5 in aid of Hospiscare, parking at the village hall. Entry £5 tea and coffee available.
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.
We have 14 gardens at the moment, open on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th June from 10.30am until 5.30pm each day.
The cost is £10 for a ticket which gives entry on both days; proceeds to Somerset and Dorset Air Ambulance, Children’s Hospice South West and St. Mary’s Church, Stogumber.
Fabulous food is served in the village hall and there are plants for sale.
There are a few seats remaining on our trip to Berkshire next Thursday 7th June which we are keen to fill!
In the morning we visit the garden at Lower Bowden Manor, near Pangbourne created in the early 20th century at the same time as the house. It had been neglected and overgrown for many years, when the current owner, who exercised her landscaping skills near Paris prior to retiring to Berkshire in 2016, took on the task of reviving the garden. It provides extensive views of the Thames valley and the Chilterns beyond. Mature trees, along with more recently planted specimens, provide structure, form, bark colour and leaf shape, thus creating a garden for all seasons. There are numerous features to keep us interested including a rill, tall yew hedges, a pond, orchard amd a Folly.
In the afternoon we will go on to the nursery Edulis. Although, as the name implies, there is a wide selection of very unusual edible plants, there is also an extensive collection of unusual perennials and rare shade-loving plants. Many of these have been collected by the nursery owner, Paul Barney a plant hunting companion of Nick Macer of Pan Global plants. The nursery is tucked away in a walled garden in the Thames Valley.
The coach will leave from Taunton (at about 8.30am) and will pick up at Clevedon. Return to Taunton should be by 6.00pm. Full details will be provided on booking.
The cost is £40 per person.
To book please contact Penny Berry on 01278 662 720 or email p.berry487@btinternet.com Please address any queries about the visit to Kate Harris 01984 624 615 nunnington@aol.com
Thank you to everyone who responded to my previous request for help at the Somerset Group Summer Plant Fair at Batcombe House on 15 June. We now have a full complement of helpers on our plant stall at the Fair.
However I am still looking for one or two volunteers to help the garden owner sell tickets at the entrance – particularly when the Fair and garden open at 12.00 and the following “shift” starting at 2.00pm. It would also be good if we could provide someone to help with car parking – again, this is particularly needed at the start of the event from 11.30am to 1.30pm.
If you could help with either of these roles it would be much appreciated. Our plant fairs are very important fund raisers for the group and mean that we can continue to offer you an excellent programme for a very low membership fee. However this does mean that we rely on members coming forward to help when needed.
As a reward, you will have free entry and time to enjoy the Fair and the magnificent gardens. Please get in touch with Jane Hunt if you wish to volunteer.
I am pleased to let you know that we have a wonderful group of stallholders coming along to the Summer Plant Fair:
On Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd June, Somerset HPS members Trish and Jeremy Gibson are opening their garden for the National Garden Scheme, their 10th year opening for the scheme. The garden is a one-acre plot around old stone barn buildings.
A small orchard leads to a part-walled garden with perennial meadow areas and multi-stemmed trees. Gently curving beds are flanked by a more formal oak pergola walk. The style throughout is a relaxed contemporary mix.
In the atmospheric courtyard, planting is more established and leads to an innovative sand meadow in front of the barns.
Home-made teas are in aid of Western Hospicecare and there are plants for sale. Original garden ceramics by Karen Edwards will be displayed and on sale.
Entry £5, children free. Cashless payment available. Well behaved dogs on leads welcome.
Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 June, 2-5.30pm Badgworth Court Barn Notting Hill Way Axbridge BS26 2NQ
The Hardy Plant Society Somerset Group 