PETERSHAM NURSERIES - London

Last July, after arriving in London we stashed our bags, and immediately caught a train to Richmond to visit Petersham Nurseries.  What a treat!

There was a bit of a buzz about this place last summer.  Wall Street Journal wrote an article and a few favorite bloggers posted about Petersham so it went on our list.  I always add a few new places to visit whilst in London along with visiting old favorites.

This greeted us at the entrance--it almost feels as if there is an entrance fee but don't worry, there isn't.

                                          First stop: straight back to the Teahouse to grab lunch.

                            Brilliant to place dessert at the beginning of this groaning board.

                            Chicken, salad, bread with a gorgeous slab of butter, and lemon cake for me.

                                                     Onward to the garden shop.

 
                                                   Aren't those terra cotta pots just perfect?

          This summer I am going to tuck those brilliant green sweet potato plants around the garden.

         
                                                            An abundance of Dahlias.

                             Surprisingly comfortable, although a few pillows wouldn't hurt.

                                                           Love galvanized anything.

                            If I lived in anywhere near this place I would be absolutely broke.

                                                           Those chairs, those bowls....

                                               Hope this visit adds a bright spot to your day.

ROUSHAM HOUSE & GARDEN

I adore the grounds of Rousham.  I think it is my favorite English garden.  It's been ages since I've posted anything--shoulder surgery, old job ended, new job started.  So on this beautiful Sunday afternoon, I thought it was time to post something and selfishly, I wanted to take a little walk through Rousham on a cloudy day, because I'm here in Arizona on a sunny 82 degrees day.

The Rousham garden is the work of William Kent.  One of the things famous about Rousham is a letter written by a gardener by the name of Clary who worked with Kent and later wrote to the newest Rousham owner.  The letter is a written guided tour describing the beautiful grounds to the absent owner, in hopes that he would appreciate the beauty and be tempted to visit.

                                          Gorgeously restored bench - six in all

Our tour of Rousham was led by my Oxford tutor, Richard Bisgrove.  He read bits and pieces from Clary's letter as we roamed the grounds and now I am realizing I need to get a copy of that letter.

                                                                   Rousham House

                                                                    The Gladiator

                                                               This urn is perfection

                                                         The Praeneste Terrace

                                         Look at those wall colors! And isn't that bench glorious?

                                                                  A tempting path
                                   

                                              A pretty garden rill winding through the grounds                                                                

                                                Arches and gates make my heart leap

                                                Arches and urns also make my heart leap

                                                       Another refreshing water feature

                                                            A peek at the big house

               Killer combo of mottled walls, cascading roses, purple and white lupine, chartreuse leaves.                        

                                                   Yellow roses climbing up the dovecote

                                           (Never peek or breathe inside an active dovecote)

                                                           Spectacular orange flowers
                           
                                               This little tour was just what I needed today

SEZINCOTE GARDENS

Sezincote House and Garden was another Oxford class field trip.  Have you ever heard of Sezincote?  I hadn't.  I didn't particularly love the house (it's the inspiration for Brighton Pavilion), but there were a few interesting water features that I would love to replicate.

This is the pretty side of the house.  It is done in an Indian-style which looks a little odd in the Cotswolds (in my opinion).

 The Orangery is gorgeous and curves around this beautiful grassy area.  It is now serving as a    lunch/tea room.

                            The best part of the garden is away from the house and down a slope.

          I immediately thought better of the owners for having two swings in such a perfect spot.

                      After a bit of swinging you can walk down the lawn and over the bridge to

this delightful running spring that will bring a smile to your face--it did mine and it still does as I type this.

                Honestly, I don't know if that is a gravel pathway or a stream of water--any guesses?

 This was my favorite water feature.  After our group traipsed through, I came back to take a few photos and to sit a bit and just think.

You can hop along these limestone steps and either go straight on through to the wooded area or

turn left and hop on over to this bench for a quiet spot to think.  It was hard to get a really good photo but I did my best.

HIDCOTE GARDEN

Tours of Hidcote and Sezincote were part of my Paradise in an English Garden class at Oxford. This was my second visit to Hidcote famous for its design of garden rooms.  Also famous for this gray-blue paint color seen on gates and benches.

   Hidcote should brand this paint color, don't you think? Buckets of "Hidcote Blue" would be sold.

                           Someday I'm going to post pics of fabulous weather vanes I've seen.

                                                                  Hydrangeas in abundance.

                       Archways and paths lead to various garden rooms throughout the property.

                                               A long, wide hallway between rooms.

                  Someday I will post pics of all the fabulous benches I've seen.  More Hidcote blue.

If you look closely at the sky portion of this pic you will see a swarm of bees.  I was the last visitor to see this area before it was closed off.  The buzzing was a little unnerving.

                                      The benches are more comfortable than they look.

                           Trellis patterns are always interesting.  Just the word "trellis" is pretty.

                                                        A gorgeous zinc planter.

       After touring Hidcote, I walked out the front gate, turned right, and walked down the lane to see what was nearby.

               "To Let" looked tempting.  Who wouldn't want to spend a bit of time here?

                                                  Pretty cottages just steps from the road.

                Admired the horses grazing behind a stone wall and then as I rounded the lane came to a screeching halt....                        

roosters, chickens, and ferocious looking swans roaming around as if they owned the place.  Farm animals freak me out. Well, farm animals on the loose freak me out. If I had a stick I would have kept walking but since I only had my bag and camera I retreated. Sad since I would have like to know what was around the bend....

But as I walked back up this pretty little lane I forgot all about what I didn't see and reveled in the view.

                            And looking at a thatched roof cottage makes for a nice ending.