Petersham House in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

Petersham House is not one of my favourite gardens but I keep going to it anyway and I was there again for Petersham Open Gardens 2014.

It is a garden in three parts and the main reason for visiting it is to see the long border that runs away from the house and past the nurseries which are behind the hedge on the right. Unfortunately the path goes nowhere and having reached the far end there is nothing to do but turn round and go back.

The large lawn at the back of the house is enclosed by the tall brick walls that are a major feature in that area, notably at Ham House and the walls that surround it. The wall furthest from the house has another larger border but this one is divided in to segments by hedges.

These borders have substantial and varied plants that could almost convince you that they are not planned and managed.

Looking across the lawn puts it in context with the house and also shows why I think that the garden could do a little more. The hedges are nice but the lawn lacks focus. It is about the only garden like this that does not have at least a pond.

The kitchen gardens lies beyond the hedge at the back of the previous photo and while its purpose is to be productive I also find it attractive, mainly because it is full of odd things that looks as though they have been heavily used.

Also in that part of the garden is a large chicken-run with a neat if uneven roof, the colour of which contrasts cutely with the sprinkling of red flowers.

Petersham Nurseries in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

Strictly speaking Petersham Nurseries was not part of Petersham Open Gardens 2014 but Petersham House was and as I had to go through the nurseries to get there I took a few photos as I did so.

The first picture is a reminder, because sometimes one is needed, that there is still a nursery there among the forest of tables set for tea.

I'll confess to a touch or artistic posturing in this picture but I really liked the mix of shapes and colours so I have forgiven myself for taking it.

Rosebank in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

Rosebank is one of the regulars in Petersham Open Gardens so it was no surprise to see it there again in 2014.

One of the treats of visiting it is that it is reached via the narrow, and often muddy, footpath that runs from River Lane towards the nursery and church. The garden is hidden behind another high brick wall and it entered through a small door. It feels like the Secret Garden.

I have photographed this lion water-feature at the back of the house a few times on every visit experimenting with different angles, tilts and zooms. In the end I chose a fairly normal composition selected because of the ferns and bird box on the left.

The main feature of the garden at Rosebank was the raised border around the lawn that had a pretty combination of shapes, heights and colours all encased in a frame of brick.

Petersham Lodge in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

Petersham Lodge is probably the garden that most people wanted to see in Petersham Open Gardens 2014 and I spent quite a bit of time there even though I had seen it several times before.

Of course the lake was the main feature and I have always loved it and the little bridge that crosses one corner of it.

The most popular view though is this one back towards the house.

The duck houses were new to me this year and I thought that they were very pretty. I also liked the way that they were painted in the same colour as the bridge.

Other work had been done around the lake. In particular the area where the water tickles in to the lake had matured nicely to hide the man-made elements.

After the lake, my favourite parts of the garden are the wildernesses that separate the formal parts of the garden. Smaller paths sneak through these areas and even in  garden full of people it is easy to hide.

Perhaps it was the time of year that the garden was open or perhaps the mild Winter brought the flowers out early but there were only a few patches of colour and the borders next to the house were not as exciting as in previous years.

The neatly clipped hedge had fared better and the little formal garden to the side of the house looked good in the bright sun.

My final picture in this selection from the many that I took is of another part of the wilderness. This time it was at the north end of the garden where the vegetables were. Again a semi-hidden object adds a further touch of interest.

It was a shame that the flowers did not play their full part on the day but there was still so much to see and enjoy at Petersham Lodge.

Rutland Cottage in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

A lot of Ham and Petersham is hidden behind high brick walls so it is nice to have an excuse to spy behind them.

I had walked past the wall on River Lane, near to the footpath towards the nursery and church, but had no idea what lay behind it. I was pleasantly surprised.

It was only a little garden but a lot can be done in little gardens, as this one shows. I must confess to some prejudice here as the theme of the garden was brick circles of differing heights, which is the theme of my own garden.

The owner explained that this sun-trap garden had been a swimming pool when they moved in and they definitely made the right choice in changing it.

The Glasshouse in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

The Glasshouse is always a personal highlight of Petersham Open Gardens and this year the geometric design was helped by the good sunlight emphasising the shapes.

The bad news was that the fame of the garden and the good weather had combined to bring out the crowds and as the lawn was off limits that meant that we were all squeezed on to the path.

The compensation was that with no people on it the lawn could be photographed at any time and from any angle. I just had to make sure that nobody in bright clothes was lurking in the background.

I spent a lot of time in this garden and sat for a while on one of the benches where I could look along the lawn to the garden room. Despite the number of the people milling around the garden there was a peaceful and restful atmosphere to enjoy.

Manor Farmhouse in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

The second garden that I visited in Petersham Open Gardens 2014 was the Manor Farmhouse. The postal address is in Petersham Road but the entrance to the garden was via Tree Close.

One of the delights of Open Gardens days is the range of gardens on display and while some of the bigger and grander gardens make the most impact all of them have features that make them a pleasure to see.

In this case the most distinctive and decorative feature was the hedges that framed borders on both side of the lawn.

There were some interesting things at the far end of the garden including a very tame mouse at home among a pile of small logs. There was also this nice view looking back towards the house (it is just out of picture to the left).

Montrose House in Petersham Open Gardens 2014

Petersham Open Gardens is a must-see event in my calendar and this year I had the time and the weather to do it full justice. I started at Montrose House just after the 11am when the gardens opened.

The first thing that struck me was how much the gardens had matured in the two years sine I was last there. A lot of work had been done on the garden and this work had now come to fruition.

The soft blue of one of the extensions was a lovely background for some of the pots on the terrace. The sun was appreciated by them as much as it was by me.

The garden at Montrose House is full of unusual objects and I had to be very selective in which ones to include here. There is no space for the ducks or the children but there definitely is for this Dalek-eye water feature.

The garden has a little folly in it, a ruined castle that looks more realistic now that it has be colonised by climbing plants like this rose.

There had to be a picture of one of the elephants. I chose the blue one as it looked more at home among the bushes than the pink one did out in the open. The pink one was also showing some signs or wear and is going to need some new Wellington boots soon.

PE09 NRZ annoys pedestrians (twice)

It was Petersham Open Gardens today and so there were a lot of people walking around the area and that caused a few problems as there is a lack of decent pavements in several places. Mostly people were understanding of the situation and let us walk where we had to walk.

Sadly a few people made the matter worse than it should have been due to their inconsiderate behaviour.

This car gets selected for special attention as the driver first hooted at pedestrians walking in the road in Sudbrook Lane and then parked on the pavement so stopping pedestrians from walking there. Apparently we pedestrians were not expected to walk on the pavement or the road but this car thought that it could use both.