One area infested with nettles, docks and brambles has, with the addition of brick walls, been turned into a productive walled kitchen garden. Traditional vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, parsnips and various types of beans grow alongside the more unusual yellow podded mange tout, asparagus, celeriac and garlic. We practise a 4 year crop rotation and work constantly to improve the condition of the soil.

Dahlias are a must for us as they give a vibrant display for a long time. We grow about 130 plants of more than 50 different varieties. The last of the open Sundays in 2010 (1st August) is likely to be the best time to see them this year.

Our first open afternoon in 2010 (11th July) will hopefully see many of the 400 sweet pea plants grown up cordons, together with the tripods of bush peas, still in flower. We do attempt some exhibition entries but find this very time consuming (though fun) when there is everything else in the garden needing attention. In 2008 we were thrilled to be able to exhibit at The National Sweet Pea Championships and to carry off two principal trophies.

The sunken garden with fountain developed near the back of the house gives a secluded sitting area surrounded by annuals and perennials. This area was badly grassed over yard and screamed out for attention. The idea of sinking the ground level was appealing but did present us with problems. At first, when rain fell, the paved area filled up like a bath! Underground drainage and a pump proved to be the solution.

The lake and waterfall occupy a position which was once a useless, boggy area. 55,000 litres of water are pumped round the small ponds and over the waterfall every hour. Our English Koi are fed every afternoon (fish feeding times are posted by the tea room) and you can watch from the bridge or sit in the Millennium Cone.

A summerhouse of unusual design occupies the site of an old donkey stable and has a garden of its own with cottage style planting. It's a garden within a garden.

Autumn/Winter 2008 saw the construction of a new main greenhouse on the site of the old greenhouse, which had reached the end of its life. This is a crucial facility both for the propagation of the majority of our plants and safe storage for non-hardy plants over the winter. Visitors to the garden will be able to view the layout of the new greenhouse close up during the open afternoons.