Published: 08/07/2023
A summer afternoon, pretty flowers, an elegant cup of tea with home-made cake. These were the expectations of our visit to Kathy Brown’s garden in Stevington and the visit did not disappoint at this level. But Kathy’s garden offers so much more than these simple pleasures; it is an art-lovers garden and supplies all the excitement and emotion of a visit to an art gallery.
Kathy and Simon have created, over several decades, areas of garden which reflect the essence of some artists and their works. The Rothco garden offers dark, brooding reds and blacks in copper beech, heuchera and lysimachia. On the day of our visit the dark hedges were shining with bright red new growth. Wandering on from there, and listening to Kathy’s commentary, we appreciated the Monet border with its blues and golds, the Matisse borders and the Hokusai waving grasses mimicking the rolling waves of the sea. The interpretation of a Barbara Hepworth was explained as we progressed to the wildflower meadow, planted in 2000 and now attracting a profusion of butterflies and bumblebees.
The more formal areas of the garden include a water feature created from a reclaimed stone spiral staircase, a wisteria arch and a summer house covered in clematis and roses. Topiary skills were evident in a Chinese Dragon which, as well as being amusing, catches frost and snow to show off its contours in the winter.
Any garden visit can be frustrated by those plants which were “glorious last week” and others which “are just about to flower”. All the more reason to visit again in a different season. I have been visiting Kathy’s garden over many years and seen fresh ideas take shape, grow and mature until they become part of the harmonious whole.
The garden is open from April to September on Tuesdays and Bank Holiday weekends with additional occasional openings for the National Garden Scheme. For wonderful views of the garden throughout the seasons and for bookings via the website click here.
Don’t miss the tea and cake!
