Sissinghurst: The Garden of England II

Sissinghurst: The Garden of England II
22 June 2001

Location	Sissinghurst, Kent Sissinghurst. The name conjures up images from countless books and gardening magazines. Sissinghurst is one of those mythical places that everyone has an opinion about whether they've been there or not. With all the things I had heard, I approached the place with some trepidation. Would I be trampled by a coachload of blue-rinse? Would the gardens be as degenerate as some authors seem to think? Or would they completely bowl me over as they had done with others? Some background for those who have never even heard of Sissinghurst: The houses were derelict and the gardens non-existent when they were bought by Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville-West in 1930. They were writers who had lived abroad for many years. Harold also was an MP for some time. Except for her role in creating Sissinghurst, Vita is also known for her gardening books and columns in the Observer. The Bloomsbury Group, including Virginia Woolf, was part of their circle.

Weather	Cloudy at first but clearing up later.

Bibliography	Tony Lord: Gardening at Sissinghurst

Click on the images to see larger versions.

	This is the first glimpse of the greatness of Sissinghurst that many visitors get. On our way to the famous White Garden we are treated to the Purple Border.

Nearby is this confection in pink and pale blue.

	So much has been written about the White Garden at Sissinghurst that no matter what I say I will sound like an echo. Let me just point out that the whole garden at Sissinghurst is based on the principle of informal planting within a formal framework. It's romanticism contained by classicism.

Vita and Harold liked to give their things fancy names. This pergola they called the Erechteum.

	The waxy flowers of zantedeschias in the White Garden.

Zantedeschias were very popular with art deco artists. In this picture you can see why. The wavy edge of the flowers gives the artist great freedom to draw the most sensuous lines. Additionally the simple coloring suits the rather flat style of for instance Alphonse Mucha.

	In the Yew Walk classicism has taken over completely. The crisp straight lines of the hedges aren't contrasted by anything, they simply lead the eye towards the urn at the end. It's gardening as an exercise in precision.

Once on the other side, I found myself in the rather wild and unkempt orchard. This rose grew near the yew hedges. Judging from the leaves it has some Rosa rugosa in its veins.

	Onward to the herb garden. Herbs tend to not be very pretty. Their appeal lies in their scent, folkloric associations or simple usefulness. This is to say that I didn't take many pictures of the herbs themselves. The garden did have a focal point though, this bowl supported by three lions. Thyme is growing in it.

Another focal point with planting. The plant is non-flowering chamomile, the type that is used for chamomile lawns.

	At the end of the Lime Walk a bachatante makes merry. Notice how a paving slab has been lifted by the base of the pedestal and used for planting. This is the master touch.

One of the many huge terracotta pots in the Lime Walk. It's planted with euphorbias. Ferns grow at the base to soften the effect.

	Neither the Herb Garden nor the Lime Walk have much colour at this time of year. The Cottage Garden, on the other hand was bursting with red, yellow and orange. These yellow irises are a case in point.

A copper pot surrounded by four giant yews was at the centre of the Cottage Garden. The plant in the pot is a Mimulus.

	The path leads between so much colour it's hard to take in.

The sheer exuberance in the Rose Garden is a joy to behold. Here we see 5 different roses as well as white baby's breath and grey alliums in the foreground.

	A portrait of a rose. I saw people walking around with notebooks but alas, I took only photographic notes so the name of the rose is unknown to me. My guess would be that it's an old rose, perhaps a Damask or Bourbon.

Another nameless rose. This one has untidy quartered flowers with slightly lighter petal edges. Judging from the colour I would guess it's one of David Austen's contemporary English Roses. Old pink roses usually tone towards the purple while this one has a slight orange tendency.

	A break from the vividness of the Rose Garden is welcome after a while.

Looking up towards the tower. Vita had her study in the tower furthest away. That is where she wrote her famous gardening columns for the Observer.

	On the steps of the tower there's a pair of Bagatelle pots planted with a creeping Artemisia.

Here is the other pot. The ordinary gardener can take home many ideas from Sissinghurst but pots of this quality are probably out of the range of most of us.

	One of the oft-copied Lutyens benches that Edward Lutyens designed for Sissinghurst. They are kept unpainted and weather to a silver grey.

One last look back towards the entrance shows the Main House with the library.