Longstock Park Water Gardens in Spring
Spring at Longstock Park Water Gardens
I have had the pleasure of many visits to this extraordinary garden over the last 3 years after having been initially 'introduced' as part of a commission for Which? Gardening. I then went on to complete 2 more features, this one being the latest, in the current issue of Country Living.
Situated near Stockbridge on the Leckford Estate, in Hampshire, Longstock Park Water Gardens has such a natural feel that one could be forgiven for thinking it has always been there. It is not obvious from the road and once inside, and round a small corner, a hidden gem.
In these photographs I wanted to capture the lush, fresh green of late spring with the pops of intense colour from the myriad Irises and Primula- a startling yet subtle palette before the cacophony of summer colour. Green in the form off every imaginable Hosta, structure in the form of the verticals of the Irises, rushes and grasses to soften the relative roundness of the pond shapes, all augmented by the their reflections. Rob Ballard, the Head Gardener, likens it to having a giant mirror so the colours and details 'double up'. I wanted light, water and reflections- it's all there… double!
The garden is is meticulously maintained with a natural slug programme that keeps the Hostas to near perfection.
What is not so easy to see from the photographs are all the little interconnecting bridges to little Islands each with its own planting scheme and character and a wonderful variation on the theme of little rooms! Little islands! Who'd have thought?!
Here are a few more shots..
Iris pseudocorus
Hosta fortunei 'Albopicta' looking perfect
Irises
An image from July with Astilbes, Carex and Ligularia is available to see in the Gardens section of this site.
www.longstockpark.co.uk