Gardens
We can’t get enough of our gardens at Country Life magazine. We love to visit gorgeous English country gardens at any time of year – and more and more are opening for longer, as you can see from our piece on beautiful gardens to visit all year around.
At the same time, different gardens are best at certain times of year. For instance we know the best places to see snowdrops, where to see bluebells, and the best gardens for afternoon tea in the summertime.
We have guides to our flowering trees, and our ultimate guide to British wildflowers, as well as tips on overcoming box blight and other garden pests.
Read on, and find out whether we are running any of our exclusive garden tours, which take readers to see some of the most impressive private gardens in Provence and Tuscany twice a year.
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Credit: Alamy The best daffodils and narcissi to grow your garden, whether in pots, grass or borders
With more than 26,000 to choose from, it can be agonising deciding which narcissus to grow. Charles Quest-Ritson asks daffodil doyenne Christine Skelmersdale for ideas.
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The title of Giles Kime's recent book about the designer of this room says it all: 'Nina Campbell: Elegance and Ease'. What more could anyone wish for their home? Credit: Paul Raeside/Rizzoli The Country Life Top 100 builders, architects, interior decorators and garden designers in Britain
Country Life's experts have delved into their little black books to bring you the finest architects, builders, interior decorators and garden designers in Britain.
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The south front of Lowther Castle and view of the Parterre Garden from the gardens, designed by Dan Pearson. Credit: Paul Highnam/Country Life The best garden designers and landscapers in Britain
A beautiful country house is as much about its surroundings as its bricks and mortar, something that the best garden designers in Britain all understand. We've completely revised and updated our list of the finest of them all.
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Andrew May, one of the narcissus and daffodil growers of the Scilly Isles Credit: Emily Whitfield-Wicks The flower growers of the Scilly Isles: 'There’s a bit of good fortune and a lot of hard work'
The Isles of Scilly have spectacularly good conditions for growing flowers – particularly the daffodils and other narcissi which we're now seeing everywhere.
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Credit: Chris Warren / Marston and Langinger 10 breathtakingly pretty conservatories, orangeries and greenhouses to suit any home
Whether you've got the space for a glorified window box or a minor concert venue, Amelia Thorpe has something to fit the bill.
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Credit: Chris Warren / Marston and Langinger What to grow in a conservatory, from cacti and succulents to orchids and herbs
Conservatories are once again being used for cultivating and enjoying plants. Amelia Thorpe reports on a growing trend.
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Ninfa, Lazio, Italy. The exceptionally clear water of the river flowing through this spectacular romantic landscape garden is a sight to behold. Credit: Alex Ramsay / Alamy Ninfa: The extraordinary tale of an English country garden which thrives in the heart of Italy
Charles Quest-Ritson fell in love with the spectacularly romantic gardens of Ninfa decades ago, and is just as entranced now as he was then. But make your visit while you can, he warns, since its future is not secure.
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Spectacular summer alpine flowers including Paintbrush, Lupins (lupines) and Western Pasque Flowers, on Mount Rainier National Park, Washington, USA, North America. Credit: ©Bob Gibbons The world's greatest wildflowers: Where to find them and why they bring us so much joy
Lady’s slippers by the hundreds if not thousands, hillsides golden with daisies, swards of salvias: Sarah Raven salutes Bob Gibbons, who has dedicated the best part of his life to finding and documenting wildflowers. Photographs by Bob Gibbons.
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Credit: Alamy Alan Titchmarsh: My chickens are scatty, stupid, selfish and bullying – but I wouldn't be without them
Chickens are scatty, stupid, selfish and bullying, says Alan Titchmarsh – and yet he wouldn’t be without them.
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Ferns in the sunrise over Crantock Bay near Newquay on the North Cornish coast. Credit: Alamy Where to see ferns: Six of the most spectacular places in Britain
Country Life's gardens editor Tiffany Daneff picks out some of the finest ferneries in Britain.
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A frosty March sunrise at Helman Tor, Cornwall Credit: Alamy Alan Titchmarsh: The joy of identifying trees in winter from the merest scrap of twig
Our columnist Alan Titchmarsh gives thanks for the tough training he received half a century ago – and how it kindled wonder and awe at the breadth of beauty and curiosity in the world’s botanical riches.
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John Singer Sargent, Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose, Circa 1885, Oil on canvas, Tate Britain, London, England. Credit: Alamy In Focus: Mark Griffiths on the history and revival of Sargent’s 'Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose'
Mark Griffiths describes how a dinner-party question led to the uncovering of the true identities of the lilies in Sargent’s Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose and the extraordinary history of their use and current revival.
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Stunning Labyrinth Dahlias at Chenies Manor Garden, Buckinghamshire in October. Credit: Alamy From the Sweet Lady to the Crème de Cognac: Three expert opinions on the top dahlias to buy and plant now
The chase is on: if you want to grow the best dahlias in your borders this year, you need to get your orders in soon, says Val Bourne.
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Credit: Alun Callender The willow weaver: 'I like to let the host structure feed the form'
With such romantic names as Dicky Meadows, Flanders Red and Noir de Verlaine, willow is one of Nature’s most versatile materials. Jane Wheatley meet Laura Ellen Bacon, who crafts works of art from twisted stems of Salix.
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Snowdrops Where to see snowdrops: The best places in Britain
The sight of snowdrops peeping through in January or February never fails to cheer us up – here's our pick of where to go and see them this winter.
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Constance Spry, David Austin's first-ever 'English' rose, went on sale in 1961 and remains a favourite to this day Credit: Charles Quest-Ritson David Austin, Britain's late, great king of roses: The man who brought about 'a revolution in taste, expectations and how we garden'
Charles Quest-Ritson pays tribute to David Austin, the rose breeder and entrepreneur who passed away at the end of last year aged 92.
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'Through the Mist' by Justin Minns. Credit: Justin Minns / IGPOTY 12 spectacular photographs from the International Garden Photographer of the Year competition
These stunning highlights from the 11th annual International Garden Photographer of the Year competition will be on display at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew for a month from early February.
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Galanthus elwesii var monostictus cinderdine white flowers green markings flower bulbs snowdrops spring flowering Credit: Alamy Stock Photo The trials of collecting snowdrops: 'Is there no love for a Heffalump or a Grumpy?'
A galanthophile’s work is never done, says Michael Heseltine, as he tells us about his family's floral hobby; collecting snowdrops.
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HNRTB6 Villa Lante a Bagnaia, Viterbo, Lazio, Italy Credit: Alamy Stock Photo A pilgrimage to the garden at Villa Lante, an incomparable flower of the Italian Renaissance
After 40 years, George Plumptre finally realises his dream and sees for himself Vignola’s masterpiece: the garden at Villa Lante.
