ABBOTS LANGLEY GARDENING SOCIETY ( ALGS )
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Cottesbrooke Hall Plant Finders FairCottesbrooke Hall, a wonderful Queen Anne house
dating from 1702, is set in delightful award winning gardens just
north of On Saturday 25 June 2011, 45 members and friends
of the Abbots Langley Gardening Society set off by coach to explore
the delights of Cottesbrooke Hall’s Plant Fair and gardens, and what
a treat they were! The day was overcast and we did have a downpour
in the morning, but the afternoon was fine and breezy. When we first arrived, having driven past the
Hall itself, the Fair was hidden from view.
A short walk took us through a wide break in the trees surrounding
the side of the Hall, to the entrance to the Fair – a beautiful vista. The stalls were set in rows with wide pathways
between them, starting from the end of the Hall’s formal back gardens,
down almost to edge of the ornamental lake.
At first sight, many of us wondered whether we would need the
whole day to explore the Fair and grounds, but we need not have worried. The exhibitors had some fantastic plants on offer
– beautiful new campanulas that looked more like delicate, exotic
lilies, exciting new varieties of herbs, clematis of all sorts, grasses
of many heights and hues, etc. There
were stalls with gardening equipment, ornaments, furniture, planters
and dove cotes; you could even buy a gypsy caravan to hide away in
at the bottom of your garden. Most of the men in our group were impressed
by the well-designed pruning ladders on sale.
I don’t know if anyone ordered one, but they were sorely tempted. There were a series of talks through the day
by well known experts and a story tent for children, as well as ample
facilities for teas and coffees, cakes and sandwiches, waffles and
ice cream. After an initial exploration of the stalls, some
went to hear a talk on roses and others went to explore the gardens
and grounds. The gardens of Cottesbrooke Hall are worth visiting in
themselves – there are a mixture of traditional walled gardens, with
water features, as well as some modern designs; the planting is formal
in parts and there are areas of cottage garden design.
The wild flower gardens further away from the house were beautiful
and peaceful retreats. As we explored more of the Plant Fair, our purchases
were handed over to the plant crèche, and those who had brought plants
to be swapped brought some delightful new plants back with them. By the time we made our way back to the coach,
laden with plants that seemed to have grown considerably since we
bought them, and the coach was filled greenery and gardening accessories
on the journey home. We were
weary travelers, but had enjoyed our day enormously. Kate Macnish | |||