Finest gardens in Britain
Country Gardens and gardening tips
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The Wild Garden at Doddington Hall: Bright-bulb moments
Sweeps of spring bulbs scatter the lawns of The Wild Garden at Doddington Hall — the Lincolnshire home of Mr and Mrs James Birch — in what appears to be an entirely natural show. Yet it is, in fact, a carefully curated selection that flowers in three distinct phases, says Tilly Ware. Photographs by Clive Nichols.
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Les Colombières: Ferdinand Bac’s house-and-garden masterpiece on the Riviera
A century after its seven-year creation by the artist Ferdinand Bac, the magnificent cliff-top garden of Les Colombières — at Menton in France's Alpes-Maritimes department — has been brilliantly restored, says Kathryn Bradley-Hole. Pictures by Will Pryce for Country Life.
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Curious Questions: Why does Kew Gardens have a giant pagoda?
The Pagoda at Kew Gardens, designed by Sir William Chambers, is one of the most famous, yet most incongruous landmarks at one of the world's most famous gardens. So why is it there? Jack Watkins explains.
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Topiary: The ancient art of transforming nature into cubes, pyramids and peacocks
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The garden at Fullers Mill, where 'childhood delight in wild flowers meets the idea of making a garden'
Even in the coldest months, there is much to discover in the garden at Fullers Mill, West Stow, Suffolk. This remarkable plantsman’s garden was lovingly created out of rough ground by Bernard Tickner, finds Tiffany Daneff.
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Country Life's top 10 garden stories of 2022
Our look at the best garden and nature articles of the last year from Country Life includes some very special gardens indeed.
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Re-wilding isn't new: Britain's best gardeners were inspired by wilderness 300 years ago, and here's what we can learn from them
Gardeners searching for inspiration for natural, low-maintenance havens would do well to look to the late-17th-and early-18th-century wilderness, says Tilly Ware.
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A tour of Broughton Hall, home of the Tempests for 1,000 years and the inspiration for Tottering-by-Gently
Broughton Hall is the childhood home of Country Life's cartoonist Annie Tempest, whose family have lived here for 1,000 years. Steven Desmond took a look at this palatial house and gardens; photographs by Val Corbett.
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The garden at Blackland House: A tulip-filled sanctuary that shines as bright in Autumn as it does in Spring
The garden at Blackland House, Calne, Wiltshire — the home of Mr and Mrs Ed Nicholson — is famous for its spring bulbs, but really comes into its own in autumn with its crisp underpinning of geometric forms, says Mary Keen. Photographs by Britt Willoughby Dyer.
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Thenford Arboretum: 70 acres of spectacular autumn brilliance
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The Japanese Garden at Cowden: An iconic Oriental garden in the heart of Clackmannanshire
Described in 1925 as the most important Japanese garden in the West, the Japanese Garden at Cowden in Clackmannanshire — the ancestral home of Sara Stewart — fell into decline and was eventually closed in 1955. Now, it has been magnificently restored, as Caroline Donald explains. Photographs by Clive Nichols.
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The Gardens of Greywalls: A Scottish masterpiece bearing the imprint of Lutyens and Jekyll
'Within a mashie-niblick' of the 18th green at Muirfield Golf Club lies a garden of great beauty and history, as James Truscott explains.
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Birkhall: The home of The Prince of Wales on the Balmoral estate, Aberdeenshire
Alan Titchmarsh explores the garden of Birkhall, The Prince of Wales's Scottish home on the Balmoral estate.
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Low Crag, Cumbria: A garden in perfect harmony within one of Britain's most beautiful places
The garden of Low Crag, Cumbria — home of Mr and Mrs Chris Dodd — demonstrates a thoughtful approach to gardening that has brought about a great increase in the population of birds and animal life in this two-acre plot. George Plumptre explains more; pictures by Val Corbett for Country Life.
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The gardens at Everdon Hall: How an abandoned walled garden was turned into a secluded oasis of outdoor beauty
The gardens at Everdon Hall, Northamptonshire — the home of Charles and Caroline Coaker —show off a clean, green structure balanced by romantic billowy planting. Non Morris takes a look at this beautifully judged garden; photographs by Val Corbett for Country Life.
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The exotic brilliance of Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens, a Cornwall gem with 'one of the best views in England'
Created over 25 years, Tremenheere's 20-acre hillside garden brilliantly succeeds in its makers’ aim of providing a haven far away from cares and worry, discovers James Alexander-Sinclair. Photographs by Mimi Connolly.
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Jason Goodwin: 'The very idea of stripes on a lawn made my German friend shudder'
Centrepiece of a classic English country garden, or bourgeois construct of the machine age? Our columnist Jason Goodwin takes aim at the lawn.
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The Duchess of Cornwall's gardens at Raymill, by Monty Don
Secreted in an idyllic spot by a charming mill leat, the 12-acre garden surrounding The Duchess of Cornwall’s treasured home is a precious refuge. Writer and broadcaster Monty Don takes a look, with photographs by Jason Ingram.
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Seven of the best greenhouses in Britain
Some people swear by a hardwood frame, others prefer aluminium. Whether you use yours for potting on or plating up, there’s a greenhouse for every gardener. Non Morris talks to garden luminaries about their preferences. Photographs by Andrew Sydenham for Country Life.