Great Dixter in East Sussex.
I was reminded of this by a television programme we watched yesterday. I had some lovely photos of this garden but try as I might, I can’t find them. If anyone has any to upload that would be wonderful.
The original house, known as Dixter, dating from the mid-15th century, was bought by Nathaniel Lloyd in 1909. He wrote a thick tome which we still have on our bookshelves called The English House. He had a 16th-century house in a similar style moved from Kent and the two were combined with new work by Lutyens to create a much larger house, which was rechristened Great Dixter. It is a romantic recreation of a medieval manor house, complete with a great hall. He laid out the bones of the garden but Christopher Lloyd, his son, really created the garden as it is today. He died in 2006 and created a Trust to keep the garden going. He wrote a great deal about gardening and we always enjoyed his writing. We must have been there well before 2006 because we were there at closing time and were about the last to leave. I think he must have thought everybody had gone because around the corner came Christopher Lloyd in carpet slippers looking exactly like his photo. He had a head gardener called Fergus, who he often referred to in his writings. I believe he is still there.
Try Googling "great dixter garden photos" and you will get an idea of the place.
Eric H
