Tag: topiary.

Cogshall Grange – a Cheshire garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date November 26, 2017
4 Comments on Cogshall Grange – a Cheshire garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith

Sometimes when you find a garden in the National Garden Scheme’s Yellow Book, you just know it is going to be a special place. Such was the case with the gardens at Cogshall Grange in Cheshire. The description in the book was so inviting and the reality matched it perfectly. It had been designed by Tom Stuart-Smith, one of our favourite garden designers and featured both formal and informal elements, woodland borders, a walled garden, modern herbaceous planting, wildflower meadows and an orchard, all set in the grounds of a Georgian country house.

Jude and I traveled up to Cheshire with friends Pete and Sherlie who also love the work of Tom S-S, so we all arrived full of anticipation.

As we moved from room to room in the garden discovering each feature the atmosphere and mood changed and we were constantly presented with fresh perspectives. This garden was a true garden experience.

We were really looking forward to seeing inside the walled garden which was where the influence of Tom Stuart-Smith was clearly to be seen, but of course we started with coffee and cake to get us in the mood. We discovered and enjoyed interesting small areas of planting as we made our way towards the walled garden, a delicately planted container, some beautifully pruned box and some varied, well chosen plant combinations.

Just as the garden was a careful amalgam of traditional parkland and modern perennial planting so the country house was a combination of old and modern architecture.

The walled garden was where the influence of Tom S-S could be seen and felt most strongly, with his very personal planting style and choice of plants mostly hardy perennials. The atmosphere was so gentle and calming. There was so much to photograph within its walls that the only way to do it any justice at all is through a gallery for you to peruse at your own pace. Please as usual click on the first shot and navigate using the arrows. I hope you can identify the very special feeling of this space.

We left the walled garden via a gateway which led us into gentle meadows of wildflower planting.

Walking back to the car to begin our homeward journey, we continued to make discoveries, some grassland had been cut to contrast with the longer uncut areas which were dotted with sculpture such as this beautiful stone seat.

This beautiful garden excelled!

Tags Cheshire, Cheshire gardens, clipped box, hardy perennials, herbaceous plants, meadows, new perennial gardening, perennials, plant combinations, Tom Stuart-Smith, topiary., walled garden, walled gardens, water feature, water gardening, water gardens, water in the garden, wildflower meadows

garden design garden photography garden pools gardening gardens gardens open to the public hardy perennials Italian style gardens meadows National Trust ornamental trees and shrubs roses sculpture The National Trust trees water garden water in the garden woodland woodlands

Cliveden – the house and garden of Nancy Astor

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date September 6, 2014
1 Comment on Cliveden – the house and garden of Nancy Astor

While holidaying around Cambridge earlier in the year we stopped off on our travels to have a wander around the gardens at Cliveden, the one time home of Nancy Astor. She was an English MP even though American born. Her second marriage was to Waldorf Astor who inherited to a peerage and entered the House of Lords. Nancy was the first ever woman to be a member of the House of Commons, but also gained notoriety as a Nazi supporter.

Her garden turned out to be a garden planted in a style we do not actually like but definitely “of its time”. We are definitely not fans of formal gardens or bedding schemes and here we found both but viewed from an historic perspective they were interesting. Classical figures, topiary and “grand fountains” are also not my style but Jude the Undergardener, being more of a history buff doesn’t mind them.

Interestingly close up the bedding proved to be of orange gazanias rather than the begonias or pelargoniums we expected.

But bordering the bedding scheme central feature was a long mixed border, much more to my liking.

Things were looking up soon however as we passed through an opening in the yew hedging and discovered a tree unknown to me in the woodland.

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Little areas of meadow lined the pathway down through the woodlands. Gnarled branches of old shrubs curled around on the grass near the paths.

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The old rose garden has been revamped recently with newer more disease resistant varieties, so inevitably most are from David Austin. The colours of the blooms have been chosen to represent sunrise and sunset.

The buildings clustered in the centre of the grounds were rambling and sat beautifully within its setting. In particular it had interesting chimneys and towers which look good against the clear blue sky. Towers even featured in the walled garden.

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The walled garden, with its patterned brickwork, featured beautifully planted herbaceous borders around a highly manicured lawn. The plants were mainly recent cultivars and chosen for their richness of colour.

From the courtyard as we leaned on its stone ballustrade we could see the Italianate parterre placed within more manicured lawns. They seemed to sit rather awkwardly there.

We finished our Cliveden wanderings in the Water Gardens where formal fountains and oriental buildings sit among informal pools and soft planting.

Tags classical sculpture, Cliveden, garden photography, garden sculpture, gardening, Nancy Astor, National Trust, ornamental trees, outdoor sculpture, sculpture, topiary., trees

garden design garden photography gardening shrubs

Boxing clever in the garden.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 11, 2013
2 Comments on Boxing clever in the garden.

This week is my week to trim all the box bushes in our garden, the cloud prune hedge and the more regular shaped specimens used as the cones and balls to mark entries and exits to different sections of the garden.

My preferred tool for the job is a pair of “sheep shearers”, the traditional topiarist’s favourite. They are not very kind though to arthritic joints in your hand so I need frequent stops. But what I do appreciate about these shears is that I find they help get a rhythym going which is essential if my creations are going to end up with satisfying curves. I prefer not to use any lines or formers to get accurate shapes. It is hard to explain but I just follow my instincts and react to the plants. I listen to what they tell me and let them guide my hand and eye. This does mean that the cloud hedge in particular looks slightly different every year.

In this first series of photos we can see the box right at the beginning of their haircuts.

When time comes for a break, to rest my hands and eyes I retreat to the summerhouse for a coffee, and watch Jude, the Undergardener clearing the pool in her leaky waders!

So now for a look at the finished product.

Tags box hedges, gardening, shrubs, topiary.

garden design garden photography gardening gardens open to the public ornamental trees and shrubs photography village gardens

A Felley Foray

Felley Priory Gardens are described in promotional literature as “a tranquil garden” and as “one of Nottinghamshire’s best kept secrets” but how can this be true when it is just half a mile from the M1 motorway? There is only one way to find out the answer to such mysteries visit and see for ourselves. Such a visit should be a delight as the gardens are reputed to contain many rare and unusual plants.

So did our recent foray to Felley present us with answers to the queries above?

Just minutes from the heavy traffic of the motorway in quiet farmland we find a narrow drive leading to a roughly surfaced, virtually empty car park. As usual coffee was our first requirement, so off to the “Farmhouse Tea Room” which was remarkably busy.

When we entered the garden we were the only visitors and a gardener opened up the garden gate for us. It seemed as if most visitors were just using the tea room.

The claims were indeed true. Tranquility engulfed us, enticing us on through archways and gateways to discover new garden rooms and more rare and unusual plants. Another claim seen to be true.

A pool within a walled garden presented us with clear, still reflections of the trees around it.

The gardeners were quietly working away in the shelter afforded by tall trimmed evergreen hedges, cutting down last year’s perennial growth and adding compost as a mulch around them. Their biggest task must be keeping these hedges and the varied topiary specimens in tip-top condition.

Throughout our wander around these unusual gardens we met few visitors, the most interesting being this ancient stone bishop. He looked so cold I shared my hat with him for a while. He didn’t thank me but I hope he appreciated it.