Jenny Rose Carey at Munstead Wood with purple and pink lupins. Gertrude Jekyll’s amazing garden has just been saved by the National Trust.
There is a magical garden nestled in a wood. I dream of it often, and have had the pleasure of visiting it twice. It was the garden of Gertrude Jekyll, one of my gardening heroines. To say that I was over the moon, to visit again, is an understatement.
A portrait of Gertrude Jekyll painting, aged 19.
“When the eye is trained to perceive pictorial effect, it is frequently struck by something–some combination of grouping, lighting and colour–that is seen to have that complete aspect of unity and beauty that to the artist’s eye forms a picture.” -Gertrude Jekyll in Colour Schemes for the Flower Garden
The garden at Munstead Wood has recently been acquired by Britains’ largest land and garden conservation charity – The National Trust. The garden is in need of many repairs, renovations, and stabilizations. If you would like to donate to the fund to help preserve this amazing garden the link is below. Please pass this on to friends that may be interested. https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/munstead-wood/what-next-for-munstead-wood
In the pink! Jenny Rose Carey and Katherine Mills, the General Manager at Munstead Wood.
The delightful house at Munstead Wood was designed by Gertrude’s friend, Edwin Lutyens.
Jenny Rose Carey in the garden at Munstead Wood with a tall pure-white foxglove – one of Gertrude Jekyll’s favorites.
Gertrude Jekyll was a woman ahead of her times. She was a practicing artist, craftsman, and in later life, garden designer. She brought to all of her activities a keen sense of color, and an eye for beauty. She grew up in the late Victorian era when the interiors of homes and the plants used in gardens were garish.
Gertrude’s tastes were honed by her upbringing and a group of artist friends. They traveled together, discussed art, and painted. From these early beginnings Gertrude’s tastes developed, as did her eye for beautiful things.
Gertrude turned away from the prevailing gardening style and developed her own ideas about gardens and garden design. Her ideas on how to make beautiful gardens using color were one of her greatest contributions to gardening.
As Gertrude’s eyesight declined she turned away from her high-level arts and crafts work towards gardening, designing gardens, and writing about gardens. She began her career as an author by writing for her friend William Robinson’s publication called ‘The Garden‘. They shared a common love of gardening using hardy perennial plants. Their ideas bucked the contemporary trend for fancy, patterned gardens made of annuals. They both thought that these Victorian gardens and the colors were not well thought out. Gertrude’s best-selling book, Colour Schemes for the Flower Garden, opened gardeners eyes to the possibilities of combining plants by color to produce beautiful pictures.
The Introduction to ‘Colour Schemes for the Flower Garden‘ by Gertrude Jekyll.
The highlight of a summer visit to Munstead Wood was the enormous color-themed flower border that stretched in front of a high wall for 200 feet. The width from front to back was 14 feet. The garden was planned carefully by color. the two ends were light in color. Blue and silver were at one end and purple and silver at the other. The center was for the hot colors of bright yellow, through orange to red right in the middle.
This section of Gertrude’s ‘Main Hardy Flower Border’, is shown from a May visit. The garden was not planned to peak until the three months – July, August, and September.
This tour de force of color planning was new. different, and earth-shattering to the world of gardening. Although Gertrude always described herself as ‘an amateur’, this garden showed that she was very much a professional, and she knew what she was doing.
The Head Gardener at Munstead Wood, Annabel, shows Gertrude’s plans for her long border.
This link is a tour of Munstead Wood with Head Gardener, Annabel https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/munstead-wood/behind-the-scenes-video-tour-of-munstead-wood
Gertrude had different areas for each season of the year. In this way each bed could be packed full of plants. She would direct visitors to the areas that were at their peak.
This is Gertrude’s ‘Garden of Summer Flowers’ at Munstead Wood.
A lovely corner outside the back door at Munstead Wood.
Gertrude had a long and prolific career writing many books and magazine articles. She used her practical experience gardening at Munstead Wood and also designing gardens for numerous clients.
Watch this blog and my once-a-month email (sign up at jennyrosecarey.com) for more news of the developments at Munstead Wood. Please consider supporting the work of the National Trust to get the site open to the public in a renovated state.
Tea on the terrace at Munstead Wood.
Bye for now Gardening Friends
Jenny Rose Carey
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