Lily of the valley has a long history of royal connections, as well as being the ideal flower for expressions of love. After much speculation as to what might be the favourite flower of Elizabeth II, the truth was revealed at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2019. Her Majesty confided that the honour went to lily of the valley. Apart from the fact that it was included in her coronation bouquet in 1953, it is not at all difficult to see why lily of the valley wove its way into the late Queen’s heart. It has, after all, a certain modesty about its person. The flowers are nodding and seemingly rat ..read more

Spring is here at last, and the bluebells are out, so it's time to plan your trip to see these beautiful annual visitors at their peak. Bluebells on Loughrigg Terrace, Lake District. First came the snowdrops, then the daffodils, and now it’s the turn of the bluebell to create lakes of colour across the country. If you want to grow your own, you’ll have to be surprisingly patient: trying to grow your own bluebells can often mean a wait of several years before you see the first blooms pop out. That will at least let you make sure that you plant native bluebells rather than the sadly more common ..read more

Charles Quest-Ritson admits that he never fell for orchids the way he has for roses — but the devotion they inspire is legendary. The sawfly orchid (Ophrys tenthredinifera) is among the multitude of wild orchids appearing in Mediterranean countries during April. I have had many horticultural enthusiasms, but I have never really caught the orchid bug. Better gardeners than me — rather more passionate plantsmen — have orchid houses with graded temperature zones for the different species: cool-ish is fine for cymbidiums, slightly warmer for phalaenopsis and steamy tropical heat for vani ..read more

With a stream running through it and views of the Uffington White Horse, the garden of Midsummer House in Oxfordshire —
the home of Mrs Penny Spink — is a garden of great natural beauty cleverly designed and planted to make it seem much larger than it actually is. George Plumptre paid a visit; photographs by Mimi Connolly. Iris sibirica, Primula bulleyana and Geum ‘Totally Tangerine’ by the stream in the garden at Midsummer House, Oxfordshire. Behind is the sculpture Ascent by Johannes von Stumm. The first thing you notice about Penny Spink’s garden at Midsummer House is its ebullience. As do ..read more

Arthur Parkinson marvels at the spectacular sheds of Stoney Road Allotments. A kind of magic: Inside one of the allotment sheds at Stoney Road Gardens, Coventry. I love allotment spotting from the train. On a recent journey, the carriage was so packed that I had to stand in the dark connecting part, which felt like being held within the body of a wiggly, fat caterpillar. Seeking some decent air and daylight, I walked into the almost empty first-class carriage and stood fixedly looking out of the window, making sure I didn’t catch the eye of any of the other passengers. The train was pulling ou ..read more

Within only 14 years, seven acres of featureless grass around Charlton Farm in Wiltshire have been transformed into a garden full of incident and charm, writes Caroline Donald A formal pond by the house, with tightly cut box balls, yew and Quercus ilex. Editor’s note: the following article contains references to suicide If ever there were a blank canvas, it was the landscape around Charlton Farm in north Wiltshire that Sarah Rivett-Carnac, her husband Simon, and their two young sons inherited when they moved there in 2010. Surrounding the new-build house were seven acres of grass with not a fe ..read more

The Historic Houses Garden of the Year competition is once again underway — we take a quick glance at the six shortlisted entries. Daffodils delight at Hever Castle It’s now 40 years since Historic Houses launched its Garden of the Year Award. The shortlist for 2024 has just been announced, chosen from the hundreds of gardens, parks and grounds that offer free entry to members of the not-for-profit association, and the public (that’s you) is invited to vote for a winner. See below for the list of potential winners. Voting closes on August 31 and the winner will be announced on November 12 ..read more

Our grow-your-own expert Mark Diacono takes a look at the lovely uses for lovage. Loving the Lovage: every part of the Levisticum officinale plant is edible; its tender young leaves are best for eating raw. Had we been alive when the Romans brought their straight-roaded ways to Britain, chances are that lovage (Levisticum officinale) would have been well known to us. As well as its culinary uses, it was taken to treat everything from fever to jaundice, used in bath water and placed in shoes to clean and deodorise. Its Old English name is ‘love parsley’, due to its reputation as an aphrodisiac ..read more

Adrian Fisher is a world-famous maze designer. The man behind the Saltburn maze tells us about some of his favourites. Adrian Fisher in his yew creation at his former home of Durweston Manor ‘There’s this wonderful sense of being part of an adventure,’ says maze designer Adrian Fisher. Since 1979, he has designed more than 700 full-size mazes across 36 countries in six continents. His first foray into maze making began when he was 20, creating a puzzle out of holly hedges in his father’s Dorset garden. From there, he has gone on to design mazes at Alnwick Castle, Blenheim Palace, Capel Manor ..read more

Groves Nursery in Bridport, Dorset, has been breeding violets since 1866 and, today, holds a National Collection, as well as offering more than 200 varieties for sale. Tilly Ware paid a visit and picked up expert advice from the latest member of the family to run the nursery, Clive Groves — the great-great-grandson of Groves Nursery's founder. Viola odorata, commonly known as Sweet Violet, English Violet, Common Violet, or Garden Violet. Although the genus Viola includes more than 500 species of annuals, perennials and sub-shrubs found in temperate areas across the world, it is the sweet ..read more