NGS Open Gardens at Floral Media

A while back now I signed up to the National Garden Scheme newsletter, and when it arrives in my inbox I often (but not always) check to see if there are any gardens open near me. I got lucky back in 2014 (I can’t believe it was so long ago!) when a couple of private houses in Blackheath opened their gardens, and I went along to have a look at their gardens, and to pick up some tips on what plants thrived in the local area. It was great - I remember leaving with cake, and a plant and the care instructions for it. It was a pelargonium, I forget its name, and it did survive for quite while after, even a winter but then I clearly got ahead of myself and it was no more. But happy memories of the chance to look around a space that’s not usually open.

But I digress. Another newsletter arrived recently and this time I checked to see if there would be more gardens opening near our new home in Nottinghamshire.

And there was.

A garden less than 10 miles, 15 minutes by car was holding their annual open day imminently, no booking required. So that’s how we found ourselves at Floral Media, along with 501 other people for charity. Being a complete newbie to the area, I’d struck lucky. Floral Media is a 15 acre site which has been developed over twenty years. It’s not open to the public on a daily basis but provides workshops in horticulture and floristry, as well supplying sustainably grown flowers to florists and flower arrangers.

And it is a beautiful space. It combines a home and business and showcases an abundance of talent.

Despite the look of those dark clouds in the pictures, there was very little rain - just a few spots. But there was plenty of inspiration, and colour throughout the space. The upright wooden beams brought height to where we entered the gardens, and that’s something I’m already considering for our new garden, possibly not wood, but definitely something to add some structure. The paths also did that and led you through this densely planted space.

The paths led you round the garden as you’d expect, and sometimes even as you wouldn’t expect. There was plenty to see in every space,

The paths meandered past succulents in troughs and onto the vegetable garden, and then onto the meadow with a fun garden structure complete with seating inside the tower.

We weren’t done with the succulents yet, or the colour. I loved this chair housing the coleus, it worked here but I’m not sure there’s enough persuasion to replicate this in our own garden.

The front garden was full of hollyhocks and insects inspecting them closely.

Isn’t that table great? It was in the Jungle Room, which was the only room of the house that was also open - and that was a real treat. Next up for us was to go into the field and see where they grow their cut flowers, but as we passed this area of flowering plants that were most past their best, I was struck that even these looked great and in keeping with the whole space.

The field was something else. Rows of flowers, and a couple of poly tunnels with more flowers in. What a space.

Wasn’t I lucky to spot this? And even better I’ve already spotted another garden close by which is opening on Sundays in August, so I’m hoping that we’ll get along to one of those openings too.

A new house, a new walk

We’ve spent most of the past fortnight emptying boxes and hosting family in our new house - and it’s been fun, even emptying the boxes (mostly). We knew we were setting ourselves a challenge doing both so close together, but we really wouldn’t have had it any other way. We’ve shown them our house, and our new area (or some of it at least) and it’s been great.

But it wasn’t until yesterday that I finally got around to leaving our new house on foot to explore some of the footpaths right on our doorstep. And it was so good to do that. When looking at the area we’d walked a direct route and a more scenic route to and from the pub in the next village - priorities right?! - but we hadn’t explored things closer to home.

We knew that just around the corner was a lane which led towards the River Trent, so we headed down there following the old brick wall as it wound its way round and under the brick bridge - it looks like a railway bridge, but if it is (and we don’t think it is) it isn’t a line that’s active, and onto an ornate entrance ‘for deliveries'.

From there on the wall ended and the views really opened up, and we followed the lane as it weaved its way around fields until we spotted the yellow topped wooden marker for the public bridleway, when we turned onto a narrow, verdant path.

Dodging the nettles, me more successfully than MOH it wasn’t long before the path opened out and the red haze of the (most likely) weeds caught my eye, as did the pink flowering clover along the pathway.

We could soon hear the River Trent and it wasn’t too long before we were on its banks, along with a few anglers from the local piscatorial society. To our left was a recently harvested field of barley rising up to where we’d started from.

Along the way there were plenty of thistles, resplendent in purple and complete with fluff and I also noted the potential for some blackberrying later in the summer!

Reaching a junction we turned back on ourselves, so walking parallel to the river but back on ourselves alongside fields of barley, this time with a poppy or two for a pop of colour. A view that’s really quite different to those we’re used to in South London, even Greenwich Park can’t quite offer this solitude and peacefulness.

As we ended our walk I spotted this thistle which seemed a bit behind the rest we’d seen on our walk, which also handily seemed to be better positioned for a snap - I’m quite pleased with how it turned out, and the detail that my iPhone was able to pick out.

An hour outside, three miles walked and so much more headspace regained. For us the move was a lot about space, and maximising that - already it feels like home here, and there’s so much more to explore. I’m hoping that our next venture out on foot is that one we’ve tried before, to the pub in the next village - we really should double check it, shouldn’t we?!

Tulips at Mottisfont

We stopped off at the National Trust’s Mottisfont on our way back from our short break in the New Forest. Breaking the journey with a stop at a National Trust property is absolutely my best way to break a journey, and while this one took us a little out of our way from a direct route it’d been a good few years since we last visited, so it really was a no-brainer.

I just checked and we previously visited in 2017 on our way back from a family celebration holiday in 2017. Back then I was pleased to discover the Potting Shed, but sadly it was no longer in place. On this visit though the tulips more than made up for that.

So as the tulips die back for another year, here’s a reminder of just how fabulous they are. There were so many different types, and many that I didn’t manage to capture (unbelievably!), and our wander through the walled garden started where I remembered the potting shed to have been with a large terracotta pot of tulips, and rows of raised beds equally full.

It was in these raised beds that these frilly purple tulips were mixed in with the paler pointy pink ones, and a more neutral yellowy-white variety. Though with the fancy ones, the neutral ones barely got a look in though I think they really did help the others shine.

Moving on into the walled garden the borders thronged with tulips, as you’ll see in a moment - but first just some of the glorious tulips that caught my eye. We were lucky with the weather for our visit, and the sun made the tulips shine even more.

You know how much I love a walled garden, and this one’s no different - but there’s something about gates in garden walls isn’t there? Especially closed ones, perhaps it’s the mystery of what’s behind it - and no doubt that is likely not to match my imagination.

We stopped on one of these benches to enjoy the space awhile, and admire the tulips too. On our previous visit the garden was full of roses, and I’m sure they are most likely making their presence felt right now. The climbing rose we have in our garden is doing spectacularly well with more flowers than we can remember for a long time, I’m hoping that many rose gardens are also benefitting from plenty of flowers and gorgeous scent.

There’s more individual flowers to share yet though, and I promise I didn’t stop to snap them all - though it was tempting!

The one above reminds me of rhubarb and custard, can you see that too?

As we wandered through to the end of the garden I caught sight of the armillary sphere and couldn’t resist a picture. I will have seen this previously and I’m sure admired it but wouldn’t have known its name. I do now though thanks to the Seven Sisters series of books by Lucinda Riley! See you never know when what you’ve learnt through reading will come in useful - I’m still several books behind though, and I’m waiting for some more to become available on KindleUnlimited (spoiler: I couldn’t wait for some, and it’s likely I’ll be purchasing the next in the series soon!)

It was great to have a wander around the walled garden, and to catch up with other parts of the property - including a quick tour of the house to see that again, and to answer a question I had from our previous visit. But that’s for another day…