Digging through History
Picture the perfect English garden. What do you see? The classic cottage garden, a jumble of rambling roses, hollyhocks and scented honeysuckle; the manicured emerald lawn of a stately home, dotted with topiary; or the rolling parkland, lakes and follies of an 18th-century landscape garden?
Designs have waxed and waned over the centuries, but the best gardens reflect the passions and innovations of their time. “The history of garden design reflects our changing attitudes to nature,” says Pam Smith, the National Trust’s Senior National Consultant for Gardens & Parklands. “Are we afraid of it and need to keep it at arm’s length by creating enclosed, safe spaces such as gardens within castle walls? Do we want to control nature to create idyllic countryside views, as did ‘Capability’ Brown? Or do we garden with the grain of nature, encouraging nature-friendly solutions such as meadows in our gardens?”
As far as
