Kent is a county of many and varied landscapes. The different soils have enabled gardeners in Kent to grow the great variety of plants to be seen in this display, and the habitats the soils support have inspired the ways in which the plants have been grouped.
The name, 'The Garden of England' reminds us of the traditional importance of Kent as a producer of fruit. It is often assumed that development has destroyed much of the countryside but in fact a wonderful variety of landscapes still survive and these can be a great inspiration to gardeners. The county of Kent is truly full of wild gardens and this display seeks to show how these different plant habitats can inspire the gardener.
A small area of fine grasses and flowers evokes the ancient downland created on thin alkaline soil by many centuries of grazing by sheep. This landscape is very rich in wild flowers such as harebells, orchids, thyme, cowslips, marjoram and vetches. Some very rare species can be found here. Colonies of Ophrys fuciflora the late Spider Orchid survive in the eastern part of the North Downs and three very rare species of Broomrape (Orobanche). Only a few areas of unimproved downland now remain.
Our display contains an area of moist shade inspired by those areas along the level tops of the chalk ridges which, surprisingly, provide these conditions below woodland, often beech, because of a thick layer of residual clay. This area abounds in flint, a quartz stone, which makes an attractive building material, illustrated by the flint wall in our display. The woodland gardens at Goodnestone, where cornus, magnolias eucryphias, trilliums, and other choice plants which need moisture, flourish, show what can be achieved if your garden has these conditions.
The lower greensand is a collection of free draining and often infertile sands, with occasional outcrops of ragstone, a fine building stone. Our gravel area planted with alpines illustrates how plants of mountains and screes can be made to thrive and look at home in these difficult conditions.
A section of the display devoted to plants which thrive in dry shade draws its inspiration from the woods of sweet chestnut and hazel which traditionally have been planted along the greensand ridge for coppicing. The wood is used for hop poles and fencing as shown in the fence and gate in the garden. Coppiced woodland supports a great variety of birds and insects and is carpeted with wood anemones and bluebells in spring. Orchards or 'plats' of Kent Cobnuts are also common here. Woodland gardens like Great Comp show what can be achieved in areas of dry shade. The garden contains more than 3,000 named plants. Magnificent conifers, oaks, maples and other trees are underplanted with rhododendrons, azaleas, hydrangeas and other rare shrubs providing flower and colour all year round.
The area in the display planted with herbaceous plants draws its inspiration from the undulating vale of weald clay of the High and Low Wealds. The once dense forests of ash, oak and the wild service tree (Sorbus torminalis, known locally as the Chequer which has given its name to many pubs and houses in Kent) are long gone but are remembered in the suffix 'den', meaning a forest clearing, in many place names. Clay may be hard to cultivate. It dries to rock in summer and tends to be waterlogged in winter but nevertheless it is very fertile and with hard work can be made highly productive as the colourful borders of Hole Park demonstrate.
The soil of the High Weald is a mix of heavy clay and free draining sandstone. It is an intimate landscape of small valleys with great oaks in the field boundaries and provides the romantic setting for Scotney Castle designed by William Sawrey Gilpin and for Vita and Harold Nicholson's garden at Sissinghurst which has inspired a generation of gardeners. The quintessential twentieth century garden, it is famous for its old roses and the tender climbing plants which clothe the mellow walls.
The damp area of the display evokes the atmosphere of the wetland areas of Kent. Many areas of bog and marsh have been drained but some still remain such as the reed beds at Westbere and Stodmarsh east of Canterbury on the river Stour, Holborough near Rochester, and parts of Romney Marsh where marsh mallow, marsh marigold, rushes, bladderwort and early and southern marsh orchids flourish. These provide inspiration for a garden of pool, bog or stream.
Sand and shingle. Our last landscape inspiration is found at the coast. Although it is swept by the coastal wind and there is no proper soil the area around Dungeness is one of the richest in the country for pioneer plants and for wildlife. The strange charm of this bleak landscape appealed to the film producer Derek Jarman who made a magical garden at Prospect Cottage, Dungeness on the beach against the backdrop of the power station. Here he grew red and white Valerian, Helichrysum italicum, with brilliant Escholtzia and poppies among the native Sea Kale, Vipers Bugloss and Burnet Rose.
We hope that our display will encourage you to look again at the landscape around you for inspiration in planning and planting your own garden.
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