An English Country Garden

Climb the well-worn steps
where the campanula sprawl
in dainty beauty

Under the leafy boughs
A place for contemplation
and quiet reflection

Where red and green leaves
swathe the walls and frame lattice windows.

We follow the perfumed paths overlooking the fields

and walk beside dry stone walls dotted with overhanging snapdragons
and ferns growing tall.

and here and there through the trees and flowers
a house appears

The peace is hardly broken by the gentle buzz of bees among the flowers
and behind the abundant red valerian sits the house.

The simplicity of a stone wall 
where lichen has etched colour and texture
and plants seek out nooks and crannies in which to grow

Walls have such stories to tell,
don't you think?
This one leads us to a five-bar gate and the fields beyond.

Among the reeds, 
elegant bird sculptures
inhabit a pond

 Old-fashioned roses flounce their petal skirts

inviting us to drown ourselves in their loveliness

until we see nothing else.

Feel the soft grass beneath your feet

and drink in the beauty of an English country garden.


My trip to England in June was full of many joys
and whenever I go to my home-country,
visiting lovely gardens is always at the top of my list!
This one is called Bourton House Garden.
The busy gardeners do a wonderful job of planting
different plants for each season and care for the upkeep.

To learn more about this lovely place in the Cotswolds, 
you can follow this link: Bourton House

Sit outside in the garden at one of the tables
and enjoy a salad or a quiche followed by homemade cakes.
I can thoroughly recommend Carolyn's superb carrot cake!


In her comment below, Sophia has reminded me of this lovely song:

This is sung by an American singer: Jimmie Rodgers
The musical accompaniment is very whimsical
of an unidentified tinny sounding instrument!
Why not?!
I love jumping out of the box into the unexpected,
don't you?
If not, surprise yourself!



34 comments

  1. Absolutely lovely. I can feel the sun and smell the roses. Thank you for showing us this English country garden! and here is the song that was running through my mind...

    "How many kinds of sweet flowers grow
    In an English country garden?
    We'll tell you now of some that we know
    Those we miss you'll surely pardon
    Daffodils, heart's ease and flox
    Meadowsweet and lady smocks
    Gentain, lupine and tall hollihocks
    Roses, foxgloves, snowdrops, blue forget-me-nots
    In an English country garden"

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    1. Thank you, Sophia! I have added a link to a version of this song. I remember it well!

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  2. Just beautiful Sandra! Loved this Engish garden tour! Can't pick a favorite :)
    Kate :}

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    1. Thanks, Kate. The gardens are just beautiful in real life and the plantations vary according to the time of year you visit.

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  3. So lovely and so peaceful! My favorite photo is the wall leading to the five-bar gate. I love the purple flowers spilling over the wall. Thanks for taking us along with you.

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    1. Thank you, Cathy. The photo you mention is one of my favourites too! I have such a fondness for gates and love that this one leads to the lovely surrounding countryside. I also love the way flowers and plants climb so naturally over walls.

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  4. I feel like I have been on this walk with you! I do love the brick wall with the gate! But my favorite is the last rose flower..all that gorgeous color and nothing else! I know you enjoyed this location and probably could have sat there forever!

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    1. Thanks, Mary! Yes, the centre of that rose flower fills me with pure joy! I also love the table under the trees, for that is where we sat to have our lunch. Oh to have a garden and not to do the weeding!

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  5. This lifted my spirits. So beautiful.

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    1. Thank you, Lota. It was such a lovely place to spend the afternoon.

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  6. What a beautiful house and garden!

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    1. Yes, it is a wonderful place to visit!

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  7. Hello Sandra, I truly enjoyed my visit. What a lovely garden and that photo that you took that takes us deep into the center of the rose is magnificent:) Thank you.
    Connie :)

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  8. A poetic stroll through the English Garden. I love the look of Valerian and have tried it several times in my own gardens, but it never grows well and doesn't return the next year. The peachy-pink rose is glorious. Nature's perfection. I like the distant landscape shot of the house. Welcome back.

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    1. Yes, the Valerian is lovely and frames the landscape so well. It fits so well with the spaciousness of this garden. Thanks for the welcome back! It was quite a shock to return to a heatwave with our temperatures still rising! It will surely all end in storms and then hopefully clear the air!

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  9. What a pretty and peaceful place to be, Sandra.
    I am glad you had a wonderful trip.

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    1. Thanks, Lisa. Yes, this garden was a lovely place to spend several hours of relaxation.

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  10. I loved seeing this garden through your eyes - picking up all the quirky details. There can be nothing finer than an English country garden in summer.

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    1. Thanks, Elaine. It was gorgeous sitting in the shade under the trees!

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  11. Utterly delightful visit through your eyes . . . thank you xxx

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    1. There's nothing like an English garden, Sarn! Thanks for popping in!

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  12. What a spectacular place, Sandra! The English have such a way with their gardens and grounds. Looks like the perfect vacation spot, especially with camera in tow :) The fifth image really stands out to me in this group of beautiful images!

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    1. Thanks Anna. Those dry-stone walls are very well-known in that part of England. I just love them and take lots of pictures! The stone from the area, called the Cotswold stone is a lovely honey-colour when it's new and then it mellows with age. You can see the colour on parts of the house.

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  13. What a magical and beautiful place! Thanks for taking us along on this wonderful outing. How you must have enjoyed it so much. I love the simplicity of the stone walls.

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    1. Thank you, Gina. I love those dry-stone walls too!

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  14. Such beauty
    your words and images
    always bring me much pleasure.
    Always a wish
    to visit England and Italy...

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    1. Thank you! Maybe you could plan a trip to Europe and visit the two countries that are on your wish list!

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  15. how wonderful
    a lovely place to wander taking details and beauty to heart
    love that up close photo of petals
    ummmm, carrot cake
    so glad you enjoyed your time there!

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    1. Petals are so gorgeous close up, aren't they? Especially when we click on the image to drown ourselves in their sheer beauty!

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  16. that looks like one of those places you dream about but it's nice to know it really existed. it makes me think of jane austen and how simple things are. the gardens is just beautiful.

    hope you have a lovely day.

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    1. Thank you, Lissa. It was indeed a romantic garden!

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  17. Charm and beauty galore! I've always heard how lovely the Cotswald area is and it looks like you had a lovely trip home. Sure wish my gardens looked like this :)

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    1. Thanks, Susan! There are several full-time gardeners looking after these wonderful gardens. I saw at least two of them hard at work while I was walking around. They keep the whole place so beautiful.

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