April 23 2016

Great gardens even in April showers

Time for the first EBTS UK garden visits of the year and the good old British weather brought us heavy April Showers! Still this didn’t stop us enjoying three gardens in Surrey.

Headley Court

The first was Headley Court, the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, where up to 120 service personnel go through serious physiotherapy and psychotherapy after they have been treated for their wounds. Their recovery is helped by being in an a beautiful environment as we found when we were shown round by Sargent Major George Dent & Military Liaison Officer Andy Apps.

: Headley Court built in 1899 on the site of an Elizabethan farm house bought by the Cunliffe family

: The view from the front of Headley Court

: Taking a look at the gardens

: The original main entrace through one of only 2 listed wooded entrances

: View of the sculpted lines of the well tended hedges

: A moon dial forms the centre piece of the garden

: Moon dial close up created from yew pointer & box numberals

: The train engine at the top of the yew avenue

: One of the longest yew avenues in the country

: The April showers didn't stop us enjoying the grounds

: More beautifully designed yew hedging

: Looking back to the Help The Hero's building

: The graceful curved wall with fruit trees train neatly round it

: Slightly wet but feeling very privileged to have seen Headley Court

Caxton House

After a great lunch in the welcoming environment of the Cock Inn it was time to visit our second garden of the day.

Caxton House is the home of Mr Bob Bushby who along with gardener Richard were on hand to escort us around the garden. This is a large garden with collections of spring flowers including hellebores, an arboretum and two ponds. The visit was rounded off with a nice hot cup of tea and cake.

: Gardener Richard explains how the garden has developed over the 17 years he has been looking after it

: View of the house with curving box hedge boarder

: Box balls set off the edges of the collenade

: More box balls in the boarders

: Small box parterre in front of the house

: The guest area fronted with well tended topiarised bushes

: A beautifull 'S' bend box hedge

The Old Rectory

The rain continued unabated but so did our resolve to enjoy the third garden. Home of Mr and Mrs Procter, it a Georgian Manor House and we started by walking across the front lawn whilst hearing about the house and gardens history from Trudi (Mrs Procter) who is the driving force behind all that has been achieved at the Old Rectory. After a visit to the walled garden where box cuttings are grown on to line the beds that are slowly being reclaimed we went round the side of the house to see the main garden. As we turned the corner we all went ‘Wow’ as we saw the Italianate topiary garden, parterres, statuary, an ancient moat and other features that have been reclaimed in this four acre garden.

As if all this wasn’t enough Trudi then invited us into her house and allowed to wander round with our cups of tea and cakes.

The Old Rectory is a wonderful garden lovingly created and looked after by the owners and was a great end to the first day of garden visits of 2016.