GARDENING
life
Giving your garden
the VOW factor
for the big day
midsummer. The surrounding
area of informal grounds
consists of more than 100
acres of vistas with fountains,
terraces and walks, and a vast
ornate aviary full of exotic
birds.
Serious gardening guests will
be tremendously impressed by
Hestercombe, near Taunton
in Somerset. The grounds,
designed by Jekyll and
Lutyens, combine architecture
with inspired planting schemes
and the rills, orangery and
pools are especially stunning.
There's also a surrounding
18th-century landscape garden
complete with the recently
restored Great Cascade.
Penshurst Place in Kent is
another great stately home
with grand surroundings
including magnificent lawns,
rose gardens and herbaceous
borders, walks, medieval
fishponds and an Italian
garden, all looking their
absolute colourful best from
spring to late summer thanks
to the wide range of planting.
All of the above have historic
Grade 1 gardens, meaning
they rank top
notch, but
the odds are
that several
of your
local
historic house-and-gardens will
cater for weddings, so why not
just ring up and ask?
A word of warning, though,
which I'm sure your wedding
planner would endorse: when
you go for a glamorous top
venue with stunning gardens,
the bride needs a very serious
frock so she's not eclipsed by
the surroundings. And pay
special attention to wedding
flowers, so they don't fight
with their background..
But gardens aren't just good
for summer weddings. If
you're planning to marry out
of season, why not choose a
venue that has wonderful views
from the windows, or a garden
that doesn't rely on flowers for
its structure? Stowe Landscape
Gardens in Buckinghamshire
is an Elysian concoction of
classical follies in artfully
constructed countryside that
looks superb at any time of
year. Or how about Westonbirt
Island Life - www.isleofwight.net
Arboretum in Gloucestershire
for the autumn colour? You
could even get hitched at a
botanic garden, where there's
plenty of indoor gardening
interest in the greenhouses
and conservatories besides a
reliable year-round collection
to enjoy outdoors. You'll be
surprised just how many places
are now licensed for weddings.
Choose from Bieton in Devon,
Ness in Cheshire, Birmingham
Botanic Gardens and the Royal
Botanic Gardens at Edinburgh
or Kew.
And finally, don't over1ook
the most valuable of assets on
your very own doorstep. If you
are holding the reception at
home, or in a marquee on the
lawn, my step-by-step guide
(above right) will help you plan
your strategy for making sure
the garden looks its very best
on the big day. And now's none
too soon to start.
Pay particular attention to
the lawn. Besides looking lush
and green for the occasion,
it will need to withstand
many more footfalls than
usual. The autumn and
spring before the off,
top-dress with a proprietary
lawn dressing, then apply a
feed. Use autumn lawn feed
in September or October
followed by a slow-release
feed in April to thicken the
grass and toughen it up, and
treat any weeds or moss. Mow
more regularly than usual
and remove the clippings
each time. If your mower has
a large rear roller (even if
it is the rotary type), it will
give you a first-class finish
complete with traditional
stripes. If you don't feel up
to putting in the extra work
yourself, find a professional
lawn maintenance firm.
• For a professional-looking
garden, start lavishing extra
care well in advance. Keep
hedges, topiary, climbers and
trained shrubs tightly in trim,
and fences, structures and
outbuildings in perfect nick.
Keep well on top of weeds,
too, and put in extra shrubs
as needed to boost your
displays. Roses are a good bet
for colour and scent and most
flower all summer.
• Give the garden a
last-minute makeover using
containers of seasonal
flowers and plants, with
masses of bows and ribbons
or helium-fil