The Beth Chatto Gardens!

12 Jan '06 2:24 am

Sometime ago, reading very old posts of the Moosey Forum, I read one post of Moosey's, reffering to The Chatto Gardens with extra admiration. Then, always trusting her gardening taste, I found in Google the Beth Chatto garden site : www.bethchatto.co.uk .

Right afterwards, and for about 2-3 hours, I stuck on my computer until 02.00 am in the morning! I was magnetized by the plants , by the photos! I also, promised to myself , to order early in the year (2006) the most beautiful blue Agapanthus, Geraniums,and Salvias I discovered in the Mail Order department of the site.

In the mid-time, I received my 1st journal ,"The Garden", of the Royal Horticultural Society. And, there I found a long article with beautiful photos , describing how Mrs Beth Chatto and her husband created this --repeatedly awards winning-- huge garden in a dry aeria of Colchester in Essex/England.

And --returning to our Forum---, after Pumkin's great suggestion of this link : www.bestgardening.com , I re- discover the amazing Mrs Chatto and her inspirational gardens!! In the site's special "Garden Style", and then "Great Gardeners" section!!

I advise you, dear gardener friends, to visit this link . It is so really worthed! Trust me!!

12 Jan '06 3:56 am

I agree, Beth Chatto garden's are wonderful. I highly recommend Moosey visits them again on her possibly-upcoming World Garden Tour.

Here's some pictures from Eggy-webmaster and my visit:

Beth Chatto garden visit

12 Jan '06 6:52 am

I was looking away from Home, what had been already there! Wasn't I stupid! And such a beautiful analysis, such great photos!

16 Jan '06 6:50 pm

I will definitely visit Beth Chatto's gardens. I've dutifully read most of her books at least once (she uses a lot of Latin...)

2 Feb '06 5:50 am

Like everyone else I made the trip to see these acclaimed gardens and was frankly disappointed.
In the beds surrounding the lake there was an awful lot of repitition the same hostas kept springing up everywhere for example.

I appreciate what her dry gardening experiments are trying to do - BUT WHY? I simply can not see the point of trying to grow a plant that so obviously would prefer to grow elsewhere!

One of the great joys and challenges I have found in gardening is to identify and track down a new plant that would grow in my own local environment and nurture it with tlc so that it establishes itself and becomes a strong healthy plant. Surely it is the easiest thing to grow a plant for one season without any consideration as to its needs when the resources are available to simply replace it?

Wandering around Beth Chatto's gardens my disappointment grew and grew when I would come across a plant so obviously in the wrong location trying to eek out a somewhat miserable existance and flowering with little enthusiasm. Time and again I would come across insidid-looking plants when a healthy specimen would be 'bursting all over'.

For my money "LUSH" is not a word I could associate with the Beth Chatto gardens.

If you want a plant for a semi-arid location go find one which nature has evolved over millions of years specifically for the task. They are out there! Anyone groaning and moaning and thinking there are only succulents to choose from? Don't! Check out the group of FERNS that must grow in an almost semi-arid environment to survive. There's a whole world out there!

2 Feb '06 9:23 am

Michael!

You do sound angry! And I admire people who openly and sincerely express their opinion!

I hope to visit myself the Beth Chatto Gardens in the future. Now, I wish to visit The Gardens more than before! And --before I go-- I will have a photocopy of your letter ready, with all your interesting arguments . And I'll carry it there with me and watch carefully everything! And then, I'll answer to you in detail. I promise...

So far , I always had this idea about this great gardener, that: "...The lesson that has spread far further than her (:Beth Chattos') fame, is that we should plant according to the environmental requirements of plants, as well as the techniques of working with difficult, almost impossible terrain" ( : Best Gardening .com)

I guess, many people who read your letter, will be really intrigued by it! It is really so interesting!

The Beth Chatto Gardens!

The Beth Chatto Gardens!

Beth Chatto visits

Beth Chatto Gardens, already at Home!

Disappointment at Beth Chatto's Gardens

Beth Chatto Gardens.