Plant theatre
Country Life UK|October 18, 2023
Charles Quest-Ritson joins the legion of garden enthusiasts who make the pilgrimage to the dramatic plant nurseries at Larch Cottage in Cumbria
Charles Quest-Ritson
Plant theatre

MELKINTHORPE is one of those places that you would only visit if you had a good reason. The hamlet is six miles south-east of Penrith and the reason people travel there from far away is the remarkable nurserycum-garden known as Larch Cottage. It is a place of dramatic beauty that has become a site of pilgrimage for gardeners from all over Britain. Never have architectural ingenuity, horticultural beauty and commercial plantsmanship been so perfectly combined.

Larch Cottage is one of a terrace of properties along the no-through road that is Melkinthorpe’s only access. It is said to have been the abode of Cumberland’s last highwayman. The cottage has a red Royal Mail box in its wall that dates from the reign of Queen Victoria. There is nothing to hint at the excitements that await the visitor who enters the door and passes into the multitude of garden rooms beyond.

Larch Cottage is the creature of Peter Stott, a garden designer who bought the property in 1984. Mr Stott is a local man— a Cumbrian—who grew up in Penrith, studied fine art, worked as a ballet dancer in London and returned to his roots to fulfil his love of art, architecture and plants. He set up a landscaping business and bought Larch Cottage as a place where he could grow interesting plants for the gardens he designed. His stock came from nurseries in the south of England and, in those early years, consisted mainly of hardy herbaceous perennials that were difficult to find closer to home.

Denne historien er fra October 18, 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.

Denne historien er fra October 18, 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.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA COUNTRY LIFE UKSe alt
Tales as old as time
Country Life UK

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

time-read
2 mins  |
November 13, 2024
Do the active farmer test
Country Life UK

Do the active farmer test

Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair

time-read
3 mins  |
November 13, 2024
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Country Life UK

Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin

Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts

time-read
2 mins  |
November 13, 2024
SOS: save our wild salmon
Country Life UK

SOS: save our wild salmon

Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish

time-read
3 mins  |
November 13, 2024
Into the deep
Country Life UK

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

time-read
4 mins  |
November 13, 2024
It's alive!
Country Life UK

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

time-read
4 mins  |
November 13, 2024
There's orange gold in them thar fields
Country Life UK

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

time-read
3 mins  |
November 13, 2024
True blues
Country Life UK

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.

time-read
3 mins  |
November 13, 2024
Oh so hip
Country Life UK

Oh so hip

Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland

time-read
4 mins  |
November 13, 2024
A best kept secret
Country Life UK

A best kept secret

Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning

time-read
3 mins  |
November 13, 2024