Yesterday we visited Perch Hill cuttings garden, the garden of Sarah Raven in Brightling, East Sussex. Sarah Raven has written several books on gardening and cooking and runs courses at Perch Hill in a beautiful barn overlooking the hillside (which you can see later in the post). Raven uses bold and bright colour combinations in her gardens which in theory sound discordant but in reality work well and give the garden a sense of energy.
Following an intense drive down winding one track roads with high hedgerows, we arrived without having to reverse up-hill to let other motorists past. Crisis over.
Earlier in the year I had sown seed and planted dahlia tubers from Sarah Raven, which are now in flower, but not as impressive as the blooms at Perch Hill.
The garden is only open to the public on 7 occasions this year, so I was quite excited to experience it and get some ideas for plant combinations for our garden.
The garden has several gardens (cuttings garden, kitchen garden, ornamental kitchen garden, rose and herb garden, meadow…you get the idea) but it felt more intimate than most National Trust Gardens. I liked the height and how you feel like you could be lost in the garden.
I was expecting the dahlias to be impressive and they did not disappoint. The dahlias I planted are roughly one third of the height of the ones here and I have only had 2 flowers! Next year, I need to hone my dahlia rearing skills in the garden.
I loved this grass panicum elegans ‘frosted explosion’ and how it softly floats around the dahlias. This is on my list for our garden.
Through the cutting garden to the track that leads to the herb and rose garden and the Barn…
As we arrived the rain started…And I set about quickly photographing all the containers to collect ideas.
When the rain got too heavy we had a tea break inside the barn. I liked the large wreath that was hung in the peak of the ceiling.
The rain left me with a good opportunity to get a clear shot of the rose and herb garden. Then a quick wander through the ornamental garden then back through the cutting garden and the meadow and back home. I had to plant my dahlias out.
All text and photographs are copyright by Castles on the Ground, 2016.
Castles on the Ground 