Gardens
Britain's best gardens, and advice on how to transform your own with seasonal advice from leading gardeners & Country Life experts.
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No garden should be without a winter-flowering daphne, so we've picked the bestThere is no such thing as a disappointing daphne, Charles Quest-Ritson
By Charles Quest-Ritson Published
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'It was the only design that spoke the same language as the house. It immediately felt right': An Oxfordshire home where house and garden work in perfect, asymmetrical harmonyUnderstanding the language of this house in the Chilterns was the key to creating a garden that would complement it. Tiffany Daneff takes a closer look, and speaks to both the owner and garden designer Angus Thompson to discover how it came about. Photography by Rachel Warne.
By Tiffany Daneff Published
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You don’t need to live in the countryside or have acres of space to start a cutting gardenAmy Merrick consults the expert growers at The Real Flower Company on her new West London cutting garden.
By Amy Merrick Published
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Intrepid, enterprising, dedicated: The new generation of nursery owners creating the flowers we'll be enjoying for decades to comeDavid Carver is typical of the new generation of nursery owners, determined to save historic collections and produce new hybrids. John Hoyland paid him a visit to find out more; photographs by Clive Nichols.
By John Hoyland Published
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Alan Titchmarsh: Patience is in short supply today, but learning when to crack on and when to leave well alone will do your garden wondersAlam Titchmarsh cannot wait to get to work in his brand new garden, but acting too soon could have long-lasting ramifications.
By Alan Titchmarsh Published
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Penns in the Rocks: The East Sussex garden created by Vita Sackville-West, with a little help from the huge boulders that stood here when dinosaurs walked the earthIt’s not only the pre-historic rocks that set apart the garden of Penns in the Rocks, near Tunbridge Wells, says George Plumptre. It's the fact that the layout was created by two horticultural legends: Vita Sackville-West and Lanning Roper. Photography by Jason Ingram.
By George Plumptre Published
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'I was utterly bewitched': The heartwarming success story of one of Britain's greatest rose-growersCharles Quest-Ritson talks to Trevor White, whose Norfolk rose nursery is sought out by enthusiasts for the quality and variety of its stock. Photographs by Richard Bloom.
By Charles Quest-Ritson Published
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William Robinson, the visionary gardener 150 years ahead of his timeA century and a half before the word 'rewilding' entered the gardening lexicon, a pioneering gardener named William Robinson was advocating for a more natural approach to our green spaces. Tiffany Daneff examines his legacy, and his home at Gravetye Manor.
By Tiffany Daneff Published
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'It was like going on a blind date... over a few glasses of wine our friendship was sealed and by three in the morning we had a plan': The creation of a spectacular Moroccan gardenScrubby farmland near Marrakech has been transformed into an exceptional garden with views of the snow-capped Atlas mountains. discovers Kirsty Fergusson discovers the gardens of Riad Nouria, home of Lexi and Helena Oswald. Photographs by Clive Nichols.
By Kirsty Fergusson Last updated
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Alan Titchmarsh: I'm always asked about 'creating a sensory garden', and my answer is always the sameFrom the chirruping of the birds to the sweeping of a broom, Alan Titchmarsh shares the sounds that all our gardens have in common.
By Alan Titchmarsh Published
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RHS to run two new touring shows at Badminton and at the royal estate at SandringhamThe King will collaborate with a designer on the RHS Royal Legacy Garden at the Sandringham flower show.
By Julie Harding Published
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The gardeners' gardens: Alan Titchmarsh, Mary Keen, Clive Nichols and more on the places they have on their 2026 hitlistsWhich gardens are Country Life contributors most looking forward to visiting this year? We asked them for the where and why.
By Tiffany Daneff Published
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Beautiful, rewarding, unpronounceable: Chaenomeles, the spectacular shrub that grows happily in gardens where azaleas will never bloomSo many new types of Japanese flowering quince are now available that they have been the subject of a four-year trial by the RHS. Charles Quest-Ritson picks his favourites; just don't ask him to say their names out loud.
By Charles Quest-Ritson Published
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What is everyone talking about this week: Rewilding starts in your own back garden — even in the cityIf you were to string all of Britain's gardens together, they would cover a space larger than Devon. That's why we need to rewild them.
By Will Hosie Published
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English country gardens once dotted the French Riviera. Now the last of them is about to slip away foreverCharles Quest-Ritson laments the final closure of the English Edwardian garden at Le Clos.
By Charles Quest-Ritson Published
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Three plants to grow in 2026 that are as delicious as they are pretty, from Siberian chives to 'Turkish warty cabbage'Our grow-your-own expert Mark Diacono has sound advice for those feeling adventurous in the garden in 2026.
By Mark Diacono Published
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Seeing the centuries old specimens of Carl Linnaeus in a new lightSafely stored in a dark vault in London, the dried specimens of Carl Linnaeus's 18th-century herbarium have been revealed in their true colours.
By Christopher Stocks Published
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The railway station gardens that bring a touch of bucolic bliss to an ordinary train rideGently tended by devoted staff, the railway station garden has become a rural idyll in its own right, says Andrew Martin.
By Andrew Martin Published
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The Convent Garden of Il Redentore: A Venice masterpiece that's finally opened its gates after 450 years of total privacyThe recent exemplary restoration by Paolo Pejrone of the 16th-century monastic gardens is not to be missed, writes Tim Richardson. Photographs by Nicolò Tacconi/Orto Giardino del Redentore.
By Tim Richardson Published
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Country Life's top 10 garden stories of 2025, from Alan Titchmarsh's hardy annuals to David Beckham's Cotswolds paradiseWe look back at the most-read architecture stories on the Country Life website in 2025.
By Toby Keel Published
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Helmingham Hall: The ancient garden at a medieval hall where the drawbridge is still pulled up every nightHalf a millennium of careful tending at Helmingham Hall in Suffolk — home of Ed and Sophie Tollemache — has given this garden a rare magic, most noticeable in the depths of winter. Tilly Ware paid a visit; photography by Clive Nichols.
By Tilly Ware Published


