HIGH MOSS, an imposing white house with a distinctive double-gabled roof, looms splendidly at the very top of its steeply terraced garden. From the south-facing rear, there are exhilarating 180° views out to craggy Grisedale Pike and Catbells. From the bottom of the garden, it is a mere five-minute walk to the gorgeous expanse of Derwentwater itself.
The key quality of an Arts-and-Crafts garden is its close relationship to the house. As Peter and Christine Hughes began to unravel the history of their home and breathe new life into its tired terraces, they became utterly bound up with the project. For Mr Hughes, the challenge of restoring the garden has led to a Masters in Garden History and, since 2020, the chairmanship of the garden-history and conservation charity the Gardens Trust.
Work began on the 4½ acres of garden six months before the couple moved here in 2009. As they were renovating the house and coming to terms with the way it is spread over multiple levels to cope with the steepness of the site -'it's all half-landings,' notes Mrs Hughesthey were delighted that experienced local gardener Tom Attwood came to help. The plan was to note existing plants, working outwards from the house, but it was not long before entire borders were stripped and replanted.
Denne historien er fra April 24, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra April 24, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning