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Gardens to visit  A garden


fit for a castle


Nature continues to play a large part in the enduring appeal of Scotney Castle.


Scotney Castle in Lamberhurst is not one, but two houses, untied by art and nature. Surrounded by the moat at the bottom


of the valley are the romantic ruins of the medieval castle. At the top of the hill is the new house, built between 1837 and 1843 for Edward Hussey III. From the early 18th century, British


landscape gardeners had been creating gardens inspired by pictures, but by 1800 a reaction had set in. Critics such as the Rev William Gilpin considered the grassy vistas designed by ‘Capability’ Brown too smooth and tidy. They might have been beautiful, but they were not


considered picturesque: to resemble the best landscape painting, a garden needed drama, variety and rough edges, At Scotney, the plunging site, the


mixture of sheltered quarry and open lawn, and the ragged silhouette of the Old Castle provided all three in abundance.


The garden today The bastion, a semi-circular balustrade, gives the classic view of the garden stretching down to the Old Castle at the bottom of the valley. The garden ends at the river and the park rises beyond the woods of beech and oak.


Massed clumps of ponticum rhododendrons bloom in shades of mauve, purple, rose and white in May. June showcases the famous calico pink and white bell-like flowers of kalmia latifolia, and late summer brings intense blue tones of hydrangeas.


Upcoming event


May 27, 11am-2pm The garden in rhododendron time. A tour followed by tea and coffee in the tearoom. Entry £5.


The place for plants


If you’re passionate about plants then we are well worth a visit, we’re an independent retail nursery and we grow and source a fabulously wide range of garden plants.


We look forward to seeing you! Kent Gardens 2014 The National Gardens Scheme www.ngs.org.uk Open all year round


www.thepottedgarden.co.uk Ashford Road (A20), Bearsted, Maidstone, ME14 4NH


01622 737801 Above image, © National Trust images/John Miller Mid Kent Living 25


Open 9am to 5.30pm 7 days a week including Bank Holidays


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