Location:
£22 per person

We have a different format for the day for our autumn self-drive visits. We start at The Blooming Wild nursery, just south of Wincanton. This has been under new management since 2022 and is now owned by Steven and Lindsay Lister, who are enthusiastic about wild plants and naturalistic planting. They have a originally supplied wildflowers as ‘PlantWild’, but have since expanded into herbaceous perennials and grasses. They encourage the creation and enhancement of habitats for wildlife and working with nature within a garden setting. They are kindly offering us the opportunity to picnic on site, and a discount of 10% on the day.

We then travel 10 minutes down the road to the gardens at Forest Lodge, just east of Wincanton. This 3-acre mature, country garden opens out to the surrounding farmland and the amphitheatre effect of the concentric circles of terracing towards the South West give stunning views across the Blackmoor Vale. The garden is on acidic greensand, with a similar pH to Stourhead Gardens just down the road, and there is an enviable collection of ornamental trees. The garden plans are based loosely on some of the Arts & Crafts gardens created by Lutyens and Jekyll, with more formal borders around the house. We will be offered tea and cake at the end of our visit.

Finally we will go over the border into Wiltshire to Gasper Cottage, just off the A303. This is a good contrast to Forest Lodge, with a secluded country garden surrounding a classic thatched cottage. The garden extends to about 1.5 acres and also has glorious views. Thoughtful colour combinations have been developed in the different areas of the garden and there are luxurious plantings of dahlias, grasses, asters, cardoons and other late summer specialities. Many tender plants are also bedded out each year for that extra sizzle and wow factor. There is a perennial meadow, an orchard and a nascent forest garden with a wildlife pond. The owner’s art studio is in a secret garden with exuberant planting and a sophisticated formal pond.