ANNE CHAMBERS
Is there a garden enthusiast who has not heard of the Kiftsgate rose? The name in itself conjures up images of romantic, flower-filled gardens bathed in hazy light. If one rose can be singled out as typical of an English garden, then it must be ‘Kiftsgate’. But remember, looks can deceive. Those seductive close-ups of delicate, creamy-white blooms do not always do justice to the actual plant. As ramblers go, Rosa ‘Kiftsgate’ is a positive giant. Once established, it will climb and spread its thorny branches in all directions until it forms a dense, almost impenetrable shield over other vegetation just like the rose in Sleeping Beauty. It needs room to develop, and regular care – it receives both at Kiftsgate Court.
Kiftsgate Court Gardens are just as much of a surprise as their expansive, vibrant namesake Rosa ‘Kiftsgate’. All too often taking second place to its famous neighbour Hidcote Manor, Kiftsgate Court in Gloucestershire deserves a higher ranking among England’s most important gardens for it bears testimony to almost a century of passionate dedication. Three generations of forward-looking women – from grandmother to granddaughter – have devoted themselves to the survival and continued development of this exemplary garden. And whereas Hidcote, as a grade I listed historic garden run by the National Trust, has by warrant of its status a certain museum quality about it, Kiftsgate Court as a private garden has a freer rein to combine historical components with newer elements. It thus reflects an enduring fascination with traditional country gardens.
On arrival, there is little hint of the treat awaiting you. The gravel car park to the side of the house is modest, with a collection of plant tables arranged in the far corner by the garden entrance. But perhaps the best indication that there might be an interesting garden here is the lack of a ticket booth – only a small table with a cash box usually attended by Anne or Johnny Chambers, the owners of Kiftsgate Court. This is typical of the personal touch permeating through the garden. A mellow kind of informality prevails, redolent of the English country lifestyle.
PROFUSION OF PLANTS
A narrow path leads the visitor directly into a dense green shrubbery before emerging from the semi-shade into a clearing, where the atmosphere suddenly changes. It becomes lighter, brighter and more exciting; plants, shrubs and trees merge into a pointillist vista in which all conceivable shades of pink are interspersed with splashes of light blue and the occasional white accent. The flowering profusion of roses, campanulas, peonies, lavender, cranesbills (Geranium) and many more, is set against the background of an immaculate lawn with its sharply defined edges. This effortless look, so typical of romantic English country gardens, does not happen by chance; it can only be achieved through an exceptional knowledge of plants and a keen eye for composition. There are no instructions for this kind of planting, just years of practice and experience.
Kiftsgate Court is so much a part of its surroundings that it gives the impression of having occupied this spot for centuries, and the warm, caramel stone of the house forms a fitting backdrop for the fluid, romantic planting. The classical facade and portico are actually Georgian and date from the second half of the eighteenth century, but were moved to this site between 1887 and 1891 when local landowner Sydney Graves Hamilton decided that it was the ideal location for his dream house. He incorporated the Georgian features into his new Victorian manor house and even went to the trouble of constructing a purpose-built railway line to transport the stones from his existing home at Mickleton Manor a few miles away.
PALLADIAN STYLE
The building is reminiscent of the Veneto and the classical villas of Italian architect Andrea Palladio. In contrast to the symmetry of the architecture, the planting appears vibrant and almost anarchic, as if a trace of cottage garden had slipped in and been given a bit of sophistication. The small terrace next to the house is not in the least contrived but informal and quirky, bursting with shrubs and plants which the boxwood edging can scarcely contain. The four square beds, grouped around a central stone column with a sundial, are filled with an enchanting array of flowering plants. Extravagant Paeonia lactiflora ‘Bowl of Beauty’, a pink peony resembling a miniature tulle skirt, as well as Rosa ‘Rita’ and R. ‘Rosy Cushion’, contrast with the walls of the house behind, which are themselves covered with climbers and vines.
When Mr and Mrs J.B. Muir bought Kiftsgate in 1918, it had no real garden. The terrace was paved and the strip of lawn in front of the house gave way to woodland. It was almost a blank canvas, and crying out for some tender loving care. After the devastating events of the First World War, people’s interest in gardens began to revive and the Muirs, living as it were on the doorstep of Hidcote Manor, were at the heart of this rekindled passion for gardens. Lawrence Johnston, the owner of Hidcote Manor, had moved to this quiet corner of the northern Cotswolds with his mother in 1907. By 1918 large sections of his garden were already completed, so it was natural enough for Johnston, as a neighbour and friend, to provide the Muirs with suggestions and even encouragement when the young couple started developing their own garden in 1920.
Every part of the spectacular, long mixed border demonstrates how skilfully herbaceous plants, trees and shrubs can be coordinated colour-wise. Here, soft silvery Stachys byzantina nestles up to pale pink Dictamnus albus var. purpureus, with crimson-purple Rosa ‘Prince Charles’ providing height behind.
The Four Squares: low box hedging can barely contain the profusion of flowers. A key plant here is Rosa ‘Rita’, an old rose variety now scarce in gardens.
INFORMAL DESIGN
Whereas the Hidcote gardens have a strictly defined structure of garden rooms, which lend a sense of intimacy to the large, basically rectangular site, the garden at Kiftsgate Court is considerably smaller and arranged on different heights over what is essentially a long, narrow plot. As a consequence, the design is far more informal. The paths, beds and plants here are beautifully in proportion to the size and shape of the garden. There is no question of using loud features to draw attention. Instead, all elements contribute towards creating a feminine, sensual atmosphere. In order to put this garden into context, it is important to bear in mind the predominant style of the early twentieth century. Gertrude Jekyll was then at her peak and her gardens had become a status symbol. They were based on a framework of geometric shapes and structural elements such as stone pillars, pergolas and retaining walls, all clad and covered with vegetation. The garden at Upton Grey Manor (see here) is an outstanding example of this genre. Jekyll’s contemporaries Harold Peto (1854–1933) and Thomas Mawson (1861–1933), who were likewise influential figures in garden design, both integrated a large number of architectural elements, ornamental features and strong vistas into their gardens. What distinguishes Kiftsgate Court from other gardens of this period is that its design did not slavishly copy a certain style but was based entirely on personal preferences, picking up on different elements and ideas and moulding them to create a distinctive garden. Heather Muir’s achievements are remarkable considering that with no training as a gardener she not only shaped Kiftsgate over a period of thirty-six years but also established a dynasty of women gardeners.
The Sunken Garden is both feminine and formal. White-flowering shrubs are a repeated element, including Deutzia monbeigii, Carpenteria californica and white roses.
UPPER GARDEN
Extending over just 3.2 hectares/8 acres, Kiftsgate is one of the smaller examples of England’s great gardens. Its shape is anything but ideal, illustrating how something remarkable can be created under challenging conditions. The upper garden beside the house is banana-shaped: long, narrow and curved around the main facade. Apart from the tennis court, the so-called ‘Four Squares’ to one side of the house and the Sunken Garden are the only regularly shaped areas. In the early twentieth century, a favourite design element was to subdivide a garden by a central and series of subsidiary axes. Few are used at Kiftsgate, however, and their effect is gentle rather than dramatic, as with the romantic double-sided Wide Border, 60m/200ft long, which lies along the edge of woodland. Roses such as Rosa ‘Fantin-Latour’, R. ‘Prince Charles’ and R. ‘Ferdinand Pichard’ thrive here among different varieties of cranesbill (including Geranium macrorrhizum, G. psilostemon and G. ‘Brookside’), campanulas, penstemons and Salvia sclarea var. turkestanica. Ornamental shrubs, notably Deutzia, Ceanothus, Olearia, Viburnum and Weigela are also important elements in the scheme, lending height and forming an important transition to the woodland trees. The beds are not planted in a classic triangular formation, with the tallest plants banished to the back and low ones reserved for the front. High-growing species are frequently found popping up in the middle of the composition. Heather Muir had a gift for pinpointing the underlying conditions in a specific location and choosing precisely the right plant from a rich palette of species and varieties to make her garden special.
In keeping with its location on the edge of woodland, the emphasis in the Yellow Border is on the colour and shape of foliage. Acer shirasawanum ‘Aureum’ (syn. A. japonicum ‘Aureum’) and golden Rosa ‘Graham Thomas’ rise above a mass of green.
SUNKEN GARDEN
The role ornamental shrubs can play in garden design is evident from the Sunken Garden, which is the product of two generations. Originally planned as a white garden by Heather Muir, other colours have gradually crept in over the years. However, the main plants in this northeast facing garden still set the tone – for example Carpenteria californica, which resembles a giant cistus, and a Deutzia laden with white blossom. When Heather Muir’s daughter Diany Binny took over Kiftsgate Court and its garden in 1954, her parents moved into the house next door. This represented the start of a new era. The plant collections were evaluated and supplemented. An octagonal pool with an ancient fountain in the centre was incorporated into the Sunken Garden in 1972–3 and framed by the existing groups of plants. The paving was invaded by plants, which established themselves between the cracks as if following Vita Sackville-West’s maxim of filling the garden to the brim.
WIDE BORDER
While the Sunken Garden is self-contained, other areas in the long, upper section of the garden flow into one another. A straight, paved path acts as a continuation of the Wide Border, leading to the secluded site of the tennis court surrounded by high yew hedging. Parallel to this axis, between and over the vegetation and entwining itself among the trees, grows the original Kiftsgate rose. Acquired in the 1930s from E.A. Bunyard’s nursery as a musk rose, it was later identified as a previously unknown form of large Rosa filipes and named ‘Kiftsgate’ by plantsman Graham Stuart Thomas. Compared to the proportions of ‘Kiftsgate’, the roses on either side of the path appear much more restrained. An unusual touch here is the use of Rosa gallica ‘Versicolor’ as an edging for other roses in colours ranging from pink to magenta, with accents of white and yellow. The rose beds lead to an arch of silver-leaved whitebeam (Sorbus aria ‘Lutescens’) framing a sculpture; this stands in front of a hedge that forms an endpoint to the vista. The Seated Lady by Simon Verity was commissioned by Diany Binny and is one of two sculptures created especially for this garden in the 1960s.
Flanked by a double hedge of Rosa gallica ‘Versicolor’, this path runs between the rose beds towards a sculpture. The axis is accentuated by an unusual arch of Sorbus aria ‘Lutescens’ at the far end.
REFLECTIVE POOL
Were it not for the half-concealed gap in the hedge, it would be easy to walk straight past and miss out on a thrill. Here, on the site of the former tennis court, is one of Kiftsgate Court’s surprises, a modern garden in an old setting. Like an abstract painting, it is designed to be viewed from a distance. It was Anne Chambers, Heather Muir’s granddaughter, and her husband Johnny who decided to redesign this area. As they reveal in the guide book: ‘For some years we had looked for an opportunity to add our own mark to the garden. When the surface of the tennis court became too uneven and our tennis more a game of chance then skill, we decided to design a water garden that reflected our enjoyment of contemporary design and materials.’ The resulting peaceful, contemplative scene forms a welcome counterpoint to the lavish profusion of colour in the rest of the garden. The tennis lawn has been replaced by a dark square of water with a wide paved border. Rectangular stepping stones in light-coloured Haddonstone paving – Portland stone would have been too expensive – with rhythmically spaced, narrow joints lead across the water to a square of grass in the middle of the pool. Rising from the water is a row of delicate stainless steel stems, each topped with a bronze philodendron leaf which, from a distance, resemble water lily leaves. Created by the sculptor Simon Allison, the thin steel rods appear to be swaying in the wind and are reflected in the dark, seemingly bottomless pool. This most recent feature of the garden, finished in 2000 and modelled on Geoffrey Jellicoe’s water garden at Sutton Place in Surrey, is undoubtedly a great asset to the garden. Anne Chambers has been responsible for Kiftsgate Court since 1981 and possesses an instinctive feel for the garden. Like her mother and grandmother before her, Anne has never had any formal training in design or horticulture. What she does have, however, is energy, perseverance and a deep affinity with the place. With over thirty years of accumulated experience, she knows what the garden does and does not like.
VIGNETTES
After the dark pool, the garden seems to have no further secrets left to reveal. A long bed, the Yellow Border, enclosed on one side by a high yew hedge and on the other by a waist-high box hedge, leads back to the entrance. The main focus of attention at this point is the diverse and skilful planting, a combination of different shades of green- and yellow-leaved ornamental shrubs, accented by yellow roses and groups of azure-blue delphiniums. Looking across to the woods, however, you become aware of openings like vignettes cut into the bank of trees, revealing why Sydney Graves Hamilton chose this spot for himself. Kiftsgate Court stands on the edge of a plateau that falls abruptly away to the north-west, towards the picturesque Vale of Evesham. Through these ‘windows’ in the trees, a view unfurls across the fertile valley to the Malvern Hills silhouetted in the distance. Deciduous trees cling to the slope, giving the impression of dense impenetrability, but at the end of the Yellow Border, half hidden and almost looking like an afterthought, are steps leading down the side of the hill. The trees begin to thin out and a group of Monterey pines (Pinus radiata), apparently standing sentinel, create a change of atmosphere.
Heather Muir terraced this slope back in the 1930s. She had a summer house built and planted a diverse collection of tender species, which have been augmented by her successors. Giant viper’s bugloss (Echium pininana), agave, abutilon, Acacia dealbata, cistus and Puya chilensis, a bromeliad, thrive in this frost-protected area. Surrounded by Monterey pines, you feel transported to a warmer, almost Mediterranean climate. While Heather Muir enjoyed favourable conditions on her own doorstep, Lawrence Johnston, a passionate plant collector, was obliged to resettle his exotics in his garden in Menton on the Côte d’Azur, in southern France. Then, as now, fellow plant enthusiasts frequently swapped plants and seeds; and it would be no surprise at all if some of the specimens from Johnston’s Mediterranean paradise had managed to establish themselves on this slope. What makes this particular ensemble so special is the view of the terrace below, where Anne’s mother constructed a semicircular swimming pool in the 1960s. Modern, yet timeless in appearance, the lawn-framed pool merges perfectly with the landscape. The strong bonds between mother and daughter are much in evidence here for what one began, the other completed. About ten years ago, Anne had the pool painted black, demonstrating that a swimming pool could be aesthetically pleasing in its own right. She is quite happy spending her holidays at home since, as she points out, when looking up the hill towards the house on a balmy summer’s evening, with a glass of wine in hand, it is easy to imagine one is in Italy.
Water is an important element of the garden. The Water Garden was constructed on the site of an old tennis court and is enclosed by hedges.
The half-moon pool on the lower terrace has views over the surrounding landscape.
The house appears to be surrounded by a sea of flowers. Kiftsgate’s timeless design continues to be nurtured and improved as it was in past generations, creating a distinctive and romantic atmosphere.
Kiftsgate Court Gardens have a powerful feel-good factor. Even though the garden is regularly open to the public, it still has the air of a private garden. The garden attests to the vision, hard work and close bonds between three special women who not only respected the past but also had the confidence to follow new directions. With the help of just two gardeners, Anne is rarely able to play the fine lady. Her hands are proof in themselves of the hours of work she puts in. Such is the importance to her of the legacy she intends passing on to the next generation.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
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It is important to build upon a garden’s legacy. The individual styles of each generation are woven into the evolving garden. |
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Water features and sculptures should be used sparingly and placed wisely. This maxim was introduced by Anne Chambers’ mother Diany Binny. Some of the artworks were designed by Simon Verity specifically for locations in the garden. |
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Weave in elements of surprise to offset the garden’s distinctive rural tone. |
SIGNATURE PLANTS
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Cranbesbill (Geranium) species and varieties. |
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Various hydrangeas. |
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Mock orange such as Philadelphus ‘Belle Étoile’. |
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Roses, especially Rosa ‘Kiftsgate’, R. ‘Rita’ and the distinctive rosa mundi (R. gallica ‘Versicolor’). |
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Deutzia monbeigii. |