| Buy my English posies! Kent and Surrey may- Violets of the Undercliff Wet with Channel spray; Cowslips from a Devon combe- Midland furze afire- Buy my English posies And I'll sell your heart's desire! The Flowers. Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) |
The Garden House
Set in a wooded valley on the edge of Dartmoor, this garden contains a rich and romantic terrace garden, surrounded by old walls with lovely views over garden and country.
From 1945 the late Lionel Fortescue built up a collection of carefully chosen herbaceous perennials and ornamental shrubs which he displayed beautifully on terraced slopes among the romantically decaying ruins of a 16th-century medieval monastery. Clematis and roses scale the stone walls, while beneath many varieties of herbaceous plants are laid out with great attention to colour and form.
Keith Wiley, the present occupant of this garden, keeps the quality planting in immaculate order. He has expanded the garden outside the walls with skill.