Remaking a Garden

Eleven years ago I bought a beautiful garden book with an intriguing title: The Laskett. Subtitled, “The Making of a Garden,” the book chronicled the creation of a horticultural masterpiece that was also the unique manifestation of the bond between the author, Roy Strong, and his artistic and talented wife, Julia Trevelyan Oman. Sir Roy … Read more

Book Review: Virginia Woolf’s Garden

At this time of the year I want to spend every waking minute in the garden. Unfortunately many of those waking minutes must be spent doing the necessary chores of life, like making money. To add insult to that injury, the weather on the majority of recent days has been so wet that Wellington boots … Read more

Book Review: A Time to Plant

The front cover of Hugh Cavendish’s new book, A Time to Plant, looks like an abstract painting in shades of olive green, tan and rust.  It is, in fact, a close-up of the exfoliating bark of a stewartia tree.  The tree in question is part of a collection of stewartias at Holker Hall, the Cavendish … Read more