greatwood gardens

These gardens are a quick walk from our new (yes, it still feels new!) house and are usually empty – time to play ‘let’s pretend we have a manor house!’

The gardens were designed by Arthur Shurcliff and built in phases between 1908 and 1918.  The Formal and Rose Gardens have a pavilion opening to steps leading to the Upper Garden, and a boxwood labyrinth. To get to the Upper Garden, you climb stone steps past ram’s head fountains set into a stone wall. Steps on each side of the fountain take you to the Upper Garden, walled in with old stone walls with just the right amount of lichen. There’s a round stone pool in front of the Garden House, a wee slate roofed Tudor Revival style building. On the far end a fountain is built into the garden wall and flows down a long channel to the round pool, which I haven’t seen filled with water yet. If they fill it, I’ll spend the entire summer here.