Gardens & Interiors
The finest houses, gardens and interiors in Britain, and how to create the English country house look in your home, with advice from top experts.
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I'm a tulip in a bottle, baby: A very British botanical beauty contest is gaining fans of all agesLaunched by Matthew Rice to publicise his local gardening club, the annual Tulip in a Bottle contest is popular with everyone, finds Tiffany Daneff.
By Tiffany Daneff Published
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Sarah Raven: ‘I find nature very inspiring and reassuring, when things are feeling a bit dire in the world and we have world wars’The gardener and writer on her love of Cretan wild flowers, why she quit her job as a doctor, her husband’s grandmother Vita Sackville-West — and her consuming passions.
By Lotte Brundle Published
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Growing leeks: What to plant, when to to it, and how to make them thriveOur grow-your-own expert Mark Diacono shares his favourite leeks.
By Mark Diacono Published
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The best garden designers and landscape specialists in BritainA garden or landscape that's in harmony with the buildings within it is one of the great joys of life — and something that the landscape designers and garden designers on our list of the best in Britain understand.
By Country Life Last updated
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The best country house specialists in Britain, from artists, stonemasons and joiners to builders and paint specialistsThere's been a huge amount of change among the specialists listed in the Country Life Top 100 for 2026. These are the inspiring people and companies which made it.
By Country Life Last updated
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A cheat's guide to bulbous irises and top tips for growing themIsabel Bannerman is bewitched and bewildered by bulbous irises.
By Isabel Bannerman Published
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The best interior designers in BritainThe classic English Country House style is perennially popular. Here's our pick of the best interior designers in Britain, fully revised and updated for 2026.
By Country Life Last updated
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The new entries in the Country Life Top 100 for 2026Our Country Life Top 100 has once again been entirely revised and updated. These are the new names that appear.
By Country Life Published
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How do you make an 18th century stately home fit for a 21st-century family?Grace McCloud talks to Toddy Fleming of Studio Cameron about gently updating The Hirsel — a Category A Listed stately home on land in the Scottish Borders that's been occupied by the same family for nearly a millennium.
By Grace McCloud Published
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A dream built in glass, for herbs, flowers and 'lots of fancy tomatoes'Gentle curves ensure that this greenhouse fits seamlessly into the corner of an Oxfordshire garden, finds Tiffany Daneff. Photography by Clive Nichols.
By Tiffany Daneff Published
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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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Reader Event: An eye to the future at Daylesford Heritage HouseSponsor Content Created With Daylesford
What changes to a house do most to enhance its aesthetics, function, comfort, sustainability and longevity? On March 24, leading experts in architecture, interior design, craft and restoration will share the secrets to maximising possibilities and protecting value at Daylesford’s magnificent Heritage House in Gloucestershire.
By Giles Kime Last updated
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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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New designs and accessories to brighten every roomLight it up with Amelia Thorpe's Spring-time selection of the best lights and light fittings.
By Amelia Thorpe Published
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Home is where the hearth is: Five picture-perfect cottages with glorious fireplacesAn imposing inglenook fireplace can be the natural heart of a home — and a characterful draw for buyers — as it radiates warmth and coaxes company towards that comforting glow.
By Julie Harding 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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London Design Week: What to look out for at next month's unmissable interiors eventAmelia Thorpe selects her stars of the show.
By Amelia Thorpe Published
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Reader Event: Super women at London Design WeekSponsor Content Created With Hector Finch
What can be learnt from the achievements of the world’s greatest female designers and antique dealers? Which has created the most valuable legacy? What are the secrets of their success? Come and find out at an inspiring event on the first day of London Design Week at 10.30am on Monday, March 9, at the London showroom of luxury lighting brand Hector Finch.
By Country Life 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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How do you add historic character back into a soulless room?Cornices, skirting and a striking colour palette are all key, says Emma Burns, managing director at Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler.
By Arabella Youens Published


