Those of you who have followed me for a while will know that I am passionate about flowers, nature and gardens. In fact I even have a blog dedicated to them. Earth Laughs in Flowers is no longer being updated but it is a resource of my garden visits from around the world. Wherever I travel I seek out a garden.
“My garden is all overblown with roses,
My spirit is all overblown with rhyme”
~ Vita Sackville-West
So what can I say in a single post? What do gardens mean to me?
A lot of the pleasure of a garden of one’s own is nurturing the plants through their lives. Sowing seeds, watching them grow, making sure they have the right conditions, changing them if not. It’s a lot like having children or pets. You make mistakes. You learn. And when things go well, it makes you happy. And when they don’t you try again.
(Please click on an image to enlarge / scroll through the gallery)
Details
I like to visit other gardens for many reasons. Combining a walk in pleasant surroundings is one. Having a nosey around small gardens to pick up ideas of what might work in my own is another. Large estates often have stunning vistas too. Then there are the design features, colour combinations to copy, unusual plants to admire, tiny details picked up through the camera lens, a walled garden, a fragrant garden, an edible garden, a secret garden to explore, gardens to relax in and listen to nature: mindfulness.
Colours to admire
Design Ideas to inspire
Vistas
Somewhere to relax
The last words come from my favourite garden designer who says it much better than I can.
“I try for beauty and harmony everywhere, and especially for harmony of colour. A garden so treated gives the delightful feeling of repose, and refreshment, and purest enjoyment of beauty, that seems to my understanding to be the best fulfilment of its purpose; while to the diligent worker its happiness is like the offering of a constant hymn of praise.
For I hold that the best purpose of a garden is to give delight and to give refreshment of mind, to soothe, to refine, and to lift up the heart in a spirit of praise and thankfulness.”
~ Gertrude Jekyll (Wood and Garden)
Lens- Artists Photo Challenge #311 | What’s in a Garden
TRAVEL WORDS 
BEAUTIFUL!! Impossible to pick a favorite.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed the post.
When I saw your earlier comment (I forget which post it was on) that you’d be joining this one Jude, I knew it would be spectacular and you did not disappoint. They are all marvelous and your knowledge about plants continues to amaze. Way too many favorites to choose from but I must admit although the flowers are wonderful I think those that feature greenery are the ones that call to me the loudest. Not surprisingly, an amazing post from start to finish.
Oh, thank you for your lovely comment Tina, it means a lot to me. And yes a wonderful way to showcase the beautiful gardens I visited this May/June and the flowers I found. We are definitely not short of greenery this year!
Such beautiful gardens – a visual feast! Thanks for sharing your gorgeous photo collection, Jude.
A challenge right up my street! I have so many garden photos, but decided to use the latest visits for this.
I knew this would be right up your street and your choices are stunning. hard to pick a favourite but the one to stop me in my tracks when it scrolled onto my screen is the hot border at Sissinghurst. I just love that with the red brick.
I was surprised how colourful that section was as my plants were struggling to flower. Kent is hotter and dryer than the west and much of this garden is sheltered by tall hedges.
Hardly surprising that you have completely nailed this challenge Jude! I enjoyed comparing your photos of Sissinghurst with my own (I don’t think that Delos garden was there when I visited in 2018?) and loved seeing all the Sherborne shots as that’s somewhere I’ve never been 🙂 And what a great quote to finish on!
The revamped Delos garden (it’s always been there, but not in the way it was originally meant) was opened in 2021. One reason why I wanted another visit. I was disappointed by Sherborne, but by then my foot was badly swollen and difficult to walk on so we missed the longer walk there. I didn’t think the gardens were that good, but the house tour was actually very interesting. And yes, GJ sums up the beauty of a garden perfectly.
We’ll have to go back!
Well it’s not too far from where you live. A bit of a stretch from Cornwall. Tbh I wasn’t that impressed by the Delos garden, there didn’t seem to be much in the way of plants.
You might like this article.
https://www.gardensillustrated.com/gardens/sissinghursts-mediterranean-inspired-delos-garden
Thanks, I’ll check that out 🙂
Jude, what a wonderful post! I could see myself getting lost in those gardens.
Beautiful photos of beautiful places. Well done.
I love visiting gorgeous gardens, whether they are large estates or small private gardens. All provide inspiration and encouragement. We spent a day at Sissinghurst and it was simply incredible.
So much beauty in this post, Jude.
Thanks Rupali. Glad you enjoyed it.