Sunday, July 23, 2006

The new and the old - 23 July 2006

A new twist on the formal Box hedge gardenBroughton Grange garden is a private garden of some 25 acres that is only open to the public on a few occasions per year. Having seen features about the garden, it took us quite a while to locate opening time information and, having finally prevailed in that quest, we were not going to pass up the opportunity to visit when we could.

The ParterreIt is hard to believe that this inspiring garden was bare land in 2000.

The Marble SaloonThe next stop is also one with limited access, Stowe House. It is the centrepiece of the Stowe Landscape Gardens (National Trust) but is now a school – the one Christopher Robin, A A Milne’s son attended.

Stowe HouseIt is a place with a salutary tale of the rise from sheep farmers to aristocracy and then from the peak of opulence and wealth, two generations bankrupted the family resulting in a grand sale as the place was stripped. Fortunately, unlike some other grand estates, the house was spared, rescued by a benefactor, so once again; we took advantage of one of the few open days.

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