PURPLE HAZE
Drifts of alliums and fountains of wisteria are the springtime focus of this Georgian rectory garden, created by Josephine Hoy
Strolling beside Josephine Hoy through her garden, there is no doubting that it means the world to her – not only because it has been four decades in the making, but also because it adjoins the farm where she grew up. ‘My sisters and I freely roamed the countryside here, hence I’ve always loved life outdoors and been aware of nature in all its guises,’ she says.
The garden unfolds as a series of entrancing cameos, with flowers featuring prominently, swathing cherry and apple trees with blossom above carpets of cow parsley, obelisks and an arbour with clematis, honeysuckle, roses or long trusses of fragrant wisteria; and weaving through borders showcasing different textures and colours. ‘My style of gardening is free flowing and I prefer a meadow effect as opposed to planting in blocks,’ she says. ‘I don’t like too much formality, so I encourage the flowering plants to mingle.’
While a backbone of mature trees and shrubs provides interest in all seasons, the garden peaks in May with drifts of purple alliums, pink bistort, peonies, bearded irises, hardy geraniums, foxgloves, alchemilla, euphorbias, poppies, ragged robin, nectaroscordum, sweet cicely and centranthus. ‘I very much paint pictures with plants,’ she says. ‘I love plants that self-seed – anything that seeds itself tends to be happy in the position it chooses.’ Hardy geraniums are key, covering earth with foliage and flowering over a long period. Among her favourites are purple Geranium x magnificum, vivid magenta
G. psilostemon, and the freely-seeding G. pyrenaicum ‘Bill Wallis’.
Lawn is an essential foil to the abundance of flower colour, linking different areas seamlessly and guiding both eye and foot along alluring paths. ‘My mother was an artist, which possibly explains why I place so much emphasis on creating long vistas,’
she says. Specimen trees and wildlife are also passions, and go hand-in-glove with nesting boxes in every available tree.
It is a far cry from the scene that greeted Jo and her husband in 1977, when they bought the Old Rectory. ‘It was lovely but basic, apart from many lovely trees planted by a Victorian rector who had collected them during his travels,’ she says. These include a mulberry, horse chestnuts, lime, both copper and green-leaved beeches, a holm oak and lots of old yews.
The original garden was just one acre but when a neighbouring meadow came up for sale, Jo was able to add three acres. ‘My fourth child was growing up by then, and suddenly I had the time to make a garden from scratch. I was so excited,’ she says. She started near the house, gradually working up the plot, marking out each new bed. ‘Then, once I was satisfied with the shape and size, I dug out each bed, altering the shapes as needed.’
Adding structural character, Jo has built a small folly in a wildflower area surrounding a natural pond. ‘The folly is a bit of fun,’ she says. ‘I saw one at Chelsea and bought it as a kit from Redwood Stone, employing a couple of builders to put it together – they loved doing it.’ It creates a delightful focal point at the end of a serpentine grass path enclosed in curving borders.
Beyond lies a paddock. In spring, it is a sea of cow parsley, overlooked by a bench and shepherd’s hut. It sits to one side of an avenue of ornamental cherry trees, Prunus shimidsu ‘Sakura’, chosen for their gently weeping habit and compact shape.
Jo has planted many trees, including a glade of three Chinese red birches, Betula albosinensis ‘Fascination’, which stand near the