May - Middle Well

Another very hot and sunny day saw the group at Middle Well down at Stoke Gabriel. Very easy to find using satnav as the apps recognise the name, added to which our hosts had very kindly put ‘UERSA’ on a sign at the entrance for us. A first! 
Some members had booked a lunch first in Stoke Gabriel before coming up to the garden. With car shares we were all able to park at the house.
After a warm welcome we were given a guided tour of this wonderful 2 acre garden. There are so many aspects to it - lawned areas, pergolas, a summer house, two streams, one with a small waterfall making a very restful sound, woodland, a vegetable/fruit garden and - much appreciated by us - numerous benches in all areas of the garden. Plenty of choice for us, but they had over 200 at their NGS Day, must have been more competition then!

As last time, we were amazed that the whole garden is looked after by our two hosts with just one morning a week from someone else. It’s not just gardening either - stone walls rebuilt and the pergola and summer house built. I only spotted one weed too!
We finished with tea, cakes home baked of course, and a good long chat.
The money for the teas is donated to a fund to help Ukraine. Our host sells firewood from a fallen tree in the woodland, the money raised again going to the Ukraine fund. He also takes humanitarian aid out to Ukraine. A very busy couple!
We were invited to make a return visit at a different time of year.
ACM

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June - Little Ash Bungalow

We finally got a respectable number and set off for Little Ash - always an intriguing place to find but Helen provides very clear directions. For some of us this was our third visit but we always receive a very warm welcome from Helen - who described us as “a lovely bunch”- and it really is a lovely garden filled with a mass of interesting plants. You finish in a very comfortable conservatory with tea/coffee and home made cakes - what’s not to like?!  Don’t know how Helen fits it all in, she’d had a coach party of 45 the day before but she cheerfully came round the garden with us to talk about the plants and the changes she’d made.
Since our last visit Helen has made some wild patches in the lawn which are now teeming with orchids and a mix of wild flowers and grasses, the effect is stunning. We were also delighted to notice a flurry of bright blue damselflies skimming over the grass, clearly very happy with their surroundings.
Another innovation was the introduction of various pieces of metal artwork to add interest to the garden and enhance different vistas.
A very enjoyable visit in good weather.
ACM

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July - Mill Cottage

A lovely day, a lovely garden, lovely hosts and our largest group of the year. A hesitant queue tiptoed down the lane and through the ford and up the private lane and parked in an orderly fashion so that we could drive out. An idyllic setting for a thatched cottage surrounded by streams, woodland and an abundance of colour from all the pots and beds some alongside small garden ponds. We cringed at all the watering required!
It was like a royal garden party only more personal. Tables and chairs under umbrellas and small marquees were scattered round the garden and were quickly filled by members grateful for the opportunity to sit down on such a hot day. We were given a guided tour by Robin and Mark who also gave us the history of the house and garden. We admired the trees and bullrushes in one of the ponds. Dragonflies were spotted skimming over the grass and ponds.
A cream tea was served with scones and fresh strawberries. Cakes were plied upon us by ladies from the village who’d baked for the open garden for villagers a couple of days before. We’ve never been offered such a large tea before! We really were treated like royalty.
Our thanks too to Jean who had arranged this visit for us. All very enjoyable.
ACM

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July - Truants Cottage

This was a well supported visit with several members who hadn’t been able to join us for a while. It combined, for many of us, a lunch and then a garden belonging to a Mid or late C17th cottage listed as Grade 2 by Historic England. All rounded off, in the sunshine, by a cream tea. Then it was time to face all those roadworks again!

We’d been told to park at The Waie Inn so it seemed only polite to eat lunch there too! Fortified by a very good lunch - most, mindful of the cream tea to come, chose from the list of meals for the smaller appetite - we walked up to Truants and a very warm welcome from the owner.

The garden is 1/3rd acre of roses, mixed herbaceous borders, lawns, wild grasses, a wildlife pond and a whole range of specimen trees. Our visit was the last of the season for Truants. The hot and dry weather did mean that many plants were about a month in advance and there probably wasn’t as much colour as there had been. It was, though, a lovely, relaxing garden to wander round, talking all the time of course! The owner kindly came round with us to answer any questions and discuss the different plants.

Then it was time for tea. Extra chairs were kindly brought out so we could all gather under the awning to get a bit of shade. The scones were plentiful and were told that they must all be eaten so we did our best to comply!
A really enjoyable visit.
ACM

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September - Ashley Court

Well, we ended the garden season with a bang - literally! As we arrived the thunder started and we walked up the drive saying "you’re always told not to shelter under a tree in a thunderstorm!". However, it didn’t last and we started by going indoors to look at the art on display as part of the Devon Open Studios. Art is personal and I have to admit that I wouldn’t have wished to own any of what was on display.
This is also an NGS Garden though only open in July for them. Having "done" the Art we set off to see the garden and Walled Garden. This is quite unique being in a deep valley and very big, it is thought to be older than the current house which dates from 1805. It is showing its age and is undergoing renovation. On entering there is a sign telling you that there should be five tortoises in the garden. This brought back memories that some of us had of owning a tortoise as children. Unfortunately they were keeping a low profile and we didn’t spot any of them but they’d got plenty of places to hide.
We were intrigued by a very long and clearly very old, cordon of fruit trees still producing fruit though sadly, the pears were too far away to reach!
We then decided that it was time for tea so it was back to the house while admiring the many specimen trees scattered round the grounds. The teas were very good, as was the company. Most of us indulged in the cream tea and it turned into a very pleasurable time.
Had we visited the following day we might have had trouble getting there as a tree was blocking the road we used.
We now hibernate until next Spring, look forward to seeing everyone then!
ACM