Garden Themes Part 2: Historical Fiction & Cultural Connections

In this mini  design series I've been challenging you to think of your garden as a personal story. We've covered the introduction and two popular themes; a romance and mystery already. This week we'll look at two additional themes you may like to consider.

Historical Fiction

Do you enjoy those tales of medieval mischief or perhaps the elegance of the Edwardian era? It can be fun to translate a historical period into the garden – here are a few ways you might do that.

Plant Selection

A recreation of an Elizabethan knot garden adds a sense of history in the grounds of Haddon Hall, the best preserved medieval manor house in existence.

I was struck by the re-imagined gardens at Haddon Hall, Derbyshire when I visited a few years ago. An Elizabethan knot garden had been designed in the grounds of the medieval hall and featured plants which would have been used at that time such as germander and lavender. It was striking in its austerity – no showy flowers but rather quieter textures and colors. 

Garden Layout

Valley Gardens, Harrogate was built in 1887 to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria

Many public parks in England were established during the Victorian era. I have countless childhood memories of entering the oversized black, iron gates at a parks entrance, being entranced by the giant working floral clock set into a gentle mound and planted out in bedding annuals, enjoying a picnic on the manicured lawns and being asked to stand by the floral displays for a photograph! (I'll spare us both the embarrassing examples…) It didn't matter which city we were in: Southport, Blackpool, Birkenhead, Chester – all the big parks seemed to have these elements together with a bandstand and a kiosk to buy an ice cream or cup of tea.

Many of these parks still exist today although gardening practices have evolved and designs loosened.

If you love that sense of order – a simple, strong color scheme of red, white and blue for example and prefer clean bedlines then the Victorian garden style may be one to use as your springboard. If your home has architectural styling with gingerbread trim and/or colors for example, this could be a great garden design style to really enhance that.

Prefer something a little looser? Edwardian style took the clean lines from the Victorian era but filled them with a much softer, blowsy look that many of us prefer today.

Your Personal History

A gate featuring vintage tools at the Hobbit House, Dallas TX

The Lost Gardens of Heligan are one of my favorite gardens in Cornwall. While the story of their discovery is fascinating is it actually walking around the kitchen gardens where those gardeners-turned-soldiers lived and worked that really moves me. The melon yard has been restored, the greenhouses repaired and a mouthwatering array of heritage fruit and vegetables are now grown – just as they would have been in Victorian times. I can almost hear the men raking over the beds.

Lovely display of Tom Thumb pots at Greys Court, Oxfordshire

We may not all have a Victorian walled garden to work with but perhaps you have some of your grandparents garden tools? Or a few vintage watering cans? I have a large collection of old terracotta pots which used to belong to my grandad – some of them are hand made and probably date back to early 1900s. Maybe I can find a way to display these even if I don't use them on a daily basis – perhaps something like the one above?

Cultural Connections

This month marks 30 years since we moved to the United States from England with two young children and 8 suitcases in tow. While we embraced our new life here, like every other immigrant family, we brought with us certain traditions and styles that continue to be a part of our life here.

Gardening is a way of life in England and I often joke that I was brought up with a trowel in my hand, but certainly tending a garden just seems to be an intrinsic part of who I am, and while I design in a variety of styles to suit each client, my natural design inclination is to create that wonderfully unapologetic, billowing English garden filled with roses, peonies, delphiniums and more.

Where does your family originate? Why not research key elements of gardens in that country or state and incorporate that into your current garden if it is something that speaks to you? Even if the same plants cannot be used due to climate differences, perhaps there are substitutes that could be used to create a similar look? Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Italian Style Elements

Italian Gardens at Thornbridge Hall, Derbyshire

Topiary, clean lines, classic sculptures and vertical punctuation points are just a few features you could consider.

English Cottage Garden Style

Breezy Knees Garden, Yorkshire – one of their display borders featuring layered perennials in a classical English style

Abundance, layering, no-bare-earth, exuberant – these are all adjectives which can be applied to the typical English garden. Add to that a medley of shrubs, perennials and even edibles and the only thing that's missing is your cup of tea.

Private garden designed by Sheila Chapman, England

Even the smallest of English gardens will feature an exciting array of flowers and foliage – no need for a bark-type mulch here!!

Mediterranean Styling

The Delos Garden at Sissinghurst was inspired by the ruins of the Greek Island by the same name.

Recreating Mediterranean Greece in decidedly non-Mediterranean Kent had its challenges even for Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson. After the initial design began to get lost in the undergrowth during WW11,  Dan Pearson was invited as Garden Advisor to Sissinghurst and slowly the re-imagination of this concept has come to life. Soil and lighting were addressed first before replanting could begin. This year will see the final phase opened to the public, aiming to create Harold's vision of "mats of wildflowers among the emerging bedrock" but in a more sustainable way.

Just a few lavender plants in the right place can evoke the feel (and fragrance) of the Mediterranean

The term "Mediterranean" can be interpreted in a myriad of ways of course from the inclusion of  lavender to olive trees, lemon groves and bougainvillea. Think about lighting, shadow patterns and informal gravel patios with simple metal bistro sets.

There are so many more: what about Moorish influences? South East Asia? Perhaps it's just the addition of certain colors that create this connection for you such as the rich jewel tones of Indian saris? Or perhaps the architectural detail of a pergola? Maybe the art or sculptures that you have incorporated? The style of a water feature? I'd love to know YOUR ideas.

In the final part of this series I'll share ways to weave the individual chapters of your garden story together plus get your happy-ever-after.

See more – learn more

Visiting other gardens is a wonderful way to get new ideas. Be sure to check out the open gardens, garden tours and public gardens where you live over the next few months. Plus here are another couple of ideas:

Join me this Thursday!

If you live within easy reach of Bellevue WA I've a few spots left for my Designers Eye Workshop but close registration this Wednesday so don't delay! It's a unique opportunity to learn how designers "see" in a half-day, small group workshop at one of my favorite public gardens.

Join me this fall!

From a sunset welcome dinner cruise in Sydney Harbor to top notch public gardens, exceptional private gardens, cultural excursions and koala cuddles – this bucket-list Adventures Down Under tour has it all! Join the adventure: details and registration here.