THE best gardens are those that add up to more than the sum of their parts and this is especially so at Backhouse Rossie in Fife, home to Caroline and Andrew Thomson since 2005. On one level, visitors can wander happily through the 10 acres of walled garden and woodlands; dig a little deeper, however, and you find art, science, history and horticulture are represented here in happy coalescence.
Perhaps the most striking manifestation of such thoughtfulness is the wide path that crosses the 1½-acre walled garden from east to west. It represents the double helix of DNA, using granite setts recycled from the streets of Edinburgh (an hour to the south), after they were removed during works on the city’s new tram system. The background is filled in with crushed white cockle shells, which refer to Cave 13b in South Africa, where the presence of discarded shells is regarded as one of the earliest signs of civilisation. On a more personal note, the couple’s son Hamish was surfing nearby at the time, so their use was a reminder of him.
Denne historien er fra August 23, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra August 23, 2023-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.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
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
