Day out to Mottisfont and Hillier Gardens

Loving gardens and plants as I do, my first Summer Outing with Henton Gardening Club was a treat.  The first garden we arrived at was Mottisfont Abbey, a National Trust property reknown for its rose garden.  As I had sat on my own on the coach, enjoying the views and reading etc...I had not yet found a 'buddy' to go round the gardens with.  This quite suited me and I took my time, visiting other parts of the garden first, and waiting till later to view the walled rose garden.

The weather was really warm and the cool shallow waters flowing over their chalk beds, overhung with willow, were quiet and peaceful.

Having recently admired very old Plane Trees at  Lassi in Crete, I homed in on the plane trees in the garden.  I love plane trees, ever since very young staying in London with my parents, being intrigued by  the bark on the London Plane trees which grew along roads and in the gardens behind our  home.

This statue of young man and his greyhound languishing in the summer heat, was one of several statues in the Italianate Style.

 After sitting quietly enjoying a good cup of coffee, and sorry no cake, the pieces were so large, good for sharing, but far too large for one, I started my walk to the Rose garden....I could smell the roses before I could see them.  I saw many old roses I have grown before, reminisced and wondered whether they are still in their original positions....

At every step there were wonderful blooms to admire, smell and recognise:  Ghislaine de Feligonde was growing beautifully.  I enjoyed extolling her virtues to a group who had not seen this perpetual flowering rambler before.  The circular seating area surrounded by pillars and arches was a real eyecatcher set against a backdrop of tall green trees.

The rambling rose Debutante had the most exquisite shaped pink pointed buds

and clothed from soil level to their very tips.

I think there will be a place for this one somewhere in my new garden.

How about this for a 'summer house' in the garden!

A short ride took us to Hillier Gardens...where I sat and had my lunch on a bench looking down the Centenary Border.  I had some nice chats about the wonderful plants and borders as friends from the club walked past or sat down for a few minutes rest.

Both in this border and in other areas of the garden, certain plants were at their peak, and certainly attracted my attention...here are just a small number of pictures I took:

Almost all the plants were labelled..I am sure most of them were when planted.  This shrub with pink flowers is Indigofera Howellii and loves hot and dry areas...so I shall be on the look out for this one.  However now that I am reading about this shrub I can see there are several types, and I shall be on the look out in gardens to compare different forms.

Just as you turn into the Wisteria border the lovely green of Japanese grass Hakonechloa..I have this growing in pots for now...what a lovely shape

Two of the plants which caught my eye in the rockery near to Jermyns House, were growing in dry sunny and stony spots.  It was strange to see this white one: Filipendula Vulgaris Multiplex, as I thought it enjoyed damper conditions.  I had taken picture to get the name, as I believe I grew this several decades ago...and then just by complete coincidence, on Wednesday, a friend pointed this plant out to me, and I spent a hour of so trying to find its name and picture of the plant to share and discuss its propagation with Jean.  I had one in my camera!  The strap like leaves in the middle are from an errant plant.  This filipenda has the finest of divided leaves.

This yellow flowered Achillea is Moonshine, again with fine leaves, this time grey, with flowers on fairly short stems.  In my previous garden I grew Alpine Achillea King Edward in the gravel garden.

Again in Hillier Gardens, in the heat, it was the Bog Garden and Pond area, with the verdant bamboos, ferns and other luscious growth which held me captured for some time.

Just time for a cooling drink and a more moderate slice of cake in their cafe...before a walk around the Pinetum, then the drive home with wonderful views across the countryside.