Hidcote Manor

Last stop on the tour was beloved Hidcote. From the early spring to the late autumn, the garden went through some remarkable transformations, from bare ground, ultra sparse, to over flowing, billowing lushness. Many of the tender plants had been lifted, but there were still numerous Dahlias and Salvias trucking along. The Old Garden still remains one of my favorite places in the garden, particularly after seeing it in the fall. The garden felt more enclosed, secret garden-esque, as the plants pressed into the path's edges and the plantings towered above.

Another view of from the Old Garden looking back at the Ceder of Lebanon. The plants were all rather tall, with colorful layers and overlapping textures. I kept standing on tip-toes in order to see more of the garden, to discover the plants I knew were there but couldn't be easily seen from the path's edge.

Looking up and then down the Red Borders in the late light.

The Maple Garden set off against the clean lines of the freshly clipped yews.

Looking down the Acid Border, another favorite place in the garden. The acid loving shrubs and trees under planted with darling ground covering specimens.

Looking through the Old Garden into the White Garden. Beautiful mid morning light on a day it felt like a tropical storm was coming. It was incredible to see how beautiful, full, and alive the garden looked. One of the last jobs I did at Hidcote in March was weed this very garden. We were crawling over the crowns of these plants, weeding large tracks of earth.

Looking up at the Manor

 

The Pillar Garden

This last photograph is taken from Mrs. Winthrop's Garden and it actually is the most stunning part of the garden this time of year. I took countless photographs (at three different times of day) trying to capture the long view, the overlaid colors and textures, the distant light, and the overlapping forms, structures and shapes. I was unable to capture the spectacular beauty of this perch in a single photograph, but the feeling of it remains.