We’ve probably all been on holiday somewhere really lovely and just craved to bring a bit of it home, keeping the memory alive long after we’ve had to board the boat, train or plane back. And I don’t mean only a fridge magnet (although we have started a small collection!).
Vita Sackeville-West and Harold Nicholson, creators of the legendary gardens at Sissinghurst Castle, wanted to bring back a bit of the magic they felt on the Greek island of Delos, which they visited as part of a Mediterranean cruise in 1935. So let’s glimpse into this intriguing garden-within-a-garden.
Recreating a historic Greek idyll with Mediterranean planting didn’t work out very well for Vita and Harold. The reality of the British weather, the heavy clay of the Kentish Weald and north-facing site as well as their inexperience with Mediterranean plants meant that they didn’t achieve the vision and the garden became more like woodland.
What you see today is in fact a recreation of Vita’s original vision by English garden designer Dan Pearson, who was brought in by the National Trust to remake Delos. In spring 2021, after much reshaping of the landscape with raised beds, shifting of stone and even changing the soil to a free-draining one better suited to plants from dry climates, the ‘new’ garden opened.
On the hot summer’s day when we visited, it did feel very Mediterranean. The planting is low, scrubby almost, with lots of wafty, shimmery grasses and tough drought-tolerant perennials poking out among gravel and stone. The only discordant note was struck by the definitely Kentish cottages on the outskirts.
The predominant colour was yellow, contrasted with a few blues, as in this combination of achillea and lavender.
Euphoria created vibrant splashes, and looks natural growing among the rocks and stone terraces.
Around the edges, large shrubby bushes added more yellow – is this Spanish broom? My Mum is investigating closely!
There were some delightful combinations, especially these grasses contrasted with more architectural spikey plants.
Could this be the sort of garden that could cope with climate change? It doesn’t need watering and so would manage the sort of Mediterranean temperatures we have been experiencing recently with no problems. But these plants are only able to survive wet winters if they are in the right soil, which this garden didn’t have – bringing in a whole new soil structure might not be feasible for those of us who don’t have the right conditions, and so I wondered, is it really sustainable?
As a creative project I think it’s a great success, with its strong evocation of place and its peaceful, restful mood. I could easily while away an hour or two there, sitting on a sun-warmed rock, watching the grasses sway in the breeze.
What an amazing feat bringing in all the right soil and creating that garden. It is really beautiful!
Yes I imagine they had to use a few cranes! Result is lovely though.
What a wonderful garden and the mediterranean atmosphere is surely present. The color matching is perfect. Lets that the garden will stay in good shape for a long time.
Ah, thank you for the visit, this is new since we last were there. I have to agree that to create something like this in a garden (like mine) with the wrong sort of soil is probably not feasible for most of us. But maybe even those of us with moist conditions will find them becoming drier?
Yes and on clay the combo of very wet winter soil and very dry summer soil could be a nightmare 😱
What a fantastic garden. I think I may need to rethink some of my planting choices, especially near the patio and tge front garden which get most of the sun.
Me too, am also starting to put more plants that were languishing in pots in the ground to reduce watering. Rain butt dried up weeks ago!
Thanks for sharing that visit! Beautiful garden and plantings. Isn’t it hard to decide what the changing climate will require of our gardens?! Agreeing with Heyjude that it doesn’t sound very feasible at present. Even here in Northern California — a Mediterranean climate — when we do get wet winters, some of those plants get very unhappy. And now that wildfires are the norm in our area, some of the drought tolerant plants are also highly resinous and flammable. What’s a girl to do?!
Almost impossible isn’t it?! Survival of the fittest I suppose – a few weeds seem fine like the horsetail in the allotment, it survived through from the time of the dinosaurs after all 😉