Hello everyone.
How has your week been?
D and I had a lovely week while she was on a half-term break from work. On Monday, we visited Hereford Cathedral, Mappa Mundi and the Chained Library. D and I had a fantastic day later in the week doing some girlie clothes shopping, and she also made a very yummy chocolate cake.
While it looks like I'm skipping over the week very quickly, I wanted to tell you about today was our trip on Saturday to Barnsdale Gardens and Nursery in Oakham, Leicestershire. I will fill in the details of the rest of the week another time.
Hubby and I have visited these gardens several times before and always feel inspired. It was the first time D had visited, and she was thrilled with all the gardens she saw.
Barnsdale belonged to my all-time favourite gardener, Geoff Hamilton. Between 1979 and 1996, he was the lead presenter on BBC Gardeners' World, and presented several other short gardening series during his lifetime. He was known by many as the 'Gardener of the People' and was always finding cheap and easy ways of gardening that anybody could try in their own gardens. I met him once, and he was a lovely person. He sadly passed away after a charity bike ride in 1996, but the wonderful gardens at Barnsdale are his legacy and inspiration to future generations.
Now, here are some photos to share with you. I will let them do the rest of the talking today.
Have a fantastic week, everyone.
B and D
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Absolutely gorgeous series of photos!
ReplyDeleteThey really are lovely gardens with so much to inspire. I'm glad you enjoyed seeing a few of the photos.
DeleteI always wanted to visit Barnsdale when we lived in Leicestershire but never got round to it. It looks beautiful
ReplyDeleteIf you get the chance to go it is well worth a visit. It never seems to be too crowded either which is good.
DeleteWow! What a gorgeous garden. I would love to know which rose that is?
ReplyDeleteThere are 38 wondeful gardens to enjoy at Barnsdale. I'm not sure what the rose is but I suspect that it is one of the New English roses by David Austin.
DeleteLovely photos of Barnsdale. Geoff Hamilton and Anne Swithinbank visited the Museum I worked at in Spalding when Gardener's World had a float in the Flower Parade, I can't remember what year, he did seem a lovely man. Looking forward to more of your week next time:)
ReplyDeleteHe was my favourite gardener and I learnt a lot from watching his programmes. He seemed to make gardening something anyone could do. I believe Anne was the expert on house plants back then. I'll update on the half term holiday next time. I just didn't want to distract from the pleasure of visiting Barnsdale this week.
DeleteGlorious gardens - what a lovely place to visit. I remember seeing Geoff Hamilton on television. Gardeners (professional) seem to be such gentle people.
ReplyDeleteThe gardens are a real treat to visit and lunch in the small cafe was good too.
DeleteThat looks like a lovely garden to visit! Thanks for sharing all the gorgeous flowers
ReplyDeleteThat was funny.😊 I must have been reading your latest post while you were reading mine!
DeleteThe flowers were all so lovely and we chose the perfect day to visit. I took so many pictures that day.
Thank you for sharing such beauty, your photographs a joy to see.
ReplyDeleteGeoff Hamilton, definitely a favourite of mine.
Have a happy month of June.
All the best Jan
Geoff Hamilton was so encouraging with his practical and accessible projects.
DeleteI'm glad the photos made you happy.
What a treat to walk through. Each shot is lovely. The second is my fave. Cheers, Ivy. Happy Summer.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the photos, Ivy. I hope you are doing OK x
DeleteI am thank you. Much better. Still miss Bug, but doing much, much better. Huggs.
Delete❤️Glad to hear that,Ivy x
DeleteThe gardens are glorious. What a lovely day out! Xx
ReplyDeleteThe flowers bloomed beautifully and the sun shone brightly. It was the perfect day to visit x
DeleteI loved Geoff Hamilton; he was a superb presenter. How lovely to visit Barnsdale! Did you come back full of ideas? Gorgeous photos too! 😁
ReplyDeleteYou are so right, Sal. He really made me want to get out in the garden and try out some of his ideas, even back then as a newby gardener. Barnsdale is a wondeful place to visit if you get the chance. I know you would love it.
DeleteI remember watching Geoff Hamilton all those years ago. He seemed such a genuinely nice man. Are the gardens expensive to visit?
ReplyDeleteThe tickets were £15 but we felt it was worth the money. They do have a website which may answer any other questions you might have.
Deletehttps://barnsdalegardens.co.uk/index.html
I truly loved each photo. I wish I could have seen Geoff Hamilton and his show. It would definitely be something I would be interested in. Sounds like you have all had a wonderful week.
ReplyDeleteHello, Denise. We had a great day at Barnsdale last Saturday. Geoff Hamilton was a real down to earth and hands on gardener who just wanted to share his love of gardening with everyone. I loved all the shows he was involved with. I'm glad you liked the photos. Enjoy the rest of your week.
DeleteSuch lovely photos, Beverley, thank you for sharing :) The gardens look beautiful. We always loved to Watch Geoff Hamilton too, he was a favourite.
ReplyDeleteAngie x
Thank you for your kind comment about the photos, Angie. I think I watched all of Geoff Hamilton's programmes. We even have some of them on DVD! He was such an inspiring gardener wasn't he.
DeleteFabulous, it looks like a wonderful place to visit. I think the public enjoy watching more down to earth presenters, especially those who create gardens we're able to replicate. Gardeners like Geoff Hamilton inspire us to have a go ourselves. Oooh, all those hostas, and I can't see a hole in any of them. Glad you enjoyed your week off with D.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly is worth a visit. I think we have been three or four times over the years. The hostas all looked amazing and not a slug chewed leaf in sight. Mind you, the slugs would have had to crawl over a lot of gravel for a meal.
DeleteD and I had a lovely week, thank you. Enjoy the rest of your week.
Gorgeous garden and I love those paths, beautifully designed,
ReplyDeleteI agree the gardens are pretty special and there were lots of ideas to inspire me further in our own garden.
DeleteHave a good weekend, Chris.