Country Life May 13, 2026
Country Life May 13, 2026, previews the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, visits Ferne Park and discovers the dark side of croquet.
Here's a look at some of what you'll find inside.
Home and away
Our homegrown traditions will take centre stage at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show, as Kathryn Bradley-Hole discovers
A coming of age
Tiffany Daneff marvels at the miraculous transformation of a derelict estate into a glorious garden at Ferne Park, Wiltshire
Countryside sees red over ‘green’ schemes
Solar farms are enjoying their moment in the sun, but at what cost to our rural communities? Charlotte Cooper investigates
Hoops and glory
Croquet may be a game of mani-cured lawns and clipped hedges, but it does have its darker side, warns Deborah Nicholls-Lee
Kitchen garden cook
Melanie Johnson shares the perfect fish recipe with peas
Travel
Rosie Paterson advocates flying in fine fashion and Richard MacKichan goes wild about the Highlands
His Excellency Antonio Patriota’s favourite painting
The Brazilian ambassador picks a fresco of extraordinary genius
Country-house treasure
A coronation watch is a sign of the times at Ballyscullion Park, Co Londonderry, finds John Goodall
Architectural ambitions
John Goodall delves into the 18th-century political machinations that gave rise to imposing Ven House in Somerset
The legacy
The pioneering work of influential landscape architect Brenda Colvin is applauded by Tiffany Daneff
Flow states
Amelia Thorpe is the fount of all knowledge on water features
The best-bred buddlejas
Charles Quest-Ritson meets Peter Moore, a leading plant-breeder for more than 40 years
Winging it
Continuing his series on unloved birds, Mark Cocker profiles the much misunderstood cormorant
Mirror, mirror on the wall
Melanie Cable-Alexander reflects on the mirror’s place in the history of our country houses
Luxury
Favourbrook is the home of the waistcoat for Amie Elizabeth White
Interiors
Arabella Youens admires a fresh London sitting room and Giles Kime is wowed by WOW!house
Round and round we go
Rob Crossan tucks into a fluffy Tunnock’s Tea Cake as the tasty Scottish treat turns 70
Arts & antiques
Elizabeth I and the power of the portrait fascinates Philip Mould, as he explains to Carla Passino
It’s all Greek to me
Matthew Dennison explores the Georgian-era taste for furniture with a touch of classical whimsy
Behind the curtain
New stage drapes will be unveiled at the Royal Opera House this month. Claire Jackson reports
And much more
