An Orchard View

It is Friday and time for another garden trip. Today takes us to the garden of Heather and Harry Brickford which is another beautiful National Garden Scheme garden. The NGS is an organization which features over 3,700 gardens. You can read more about this organization here. The Brickford garden is located in Essex is a bit north and east of London. This garden surrounds a very photogenic home which is made of brick with diamond shaped, leaded windows. A gravel drive sweeps up to the front of the house, the crunch of tire or shoe treads announcing visitors.     The wide front step is an invitation to enter the house but all our eyes were on the sharply edged beds overflowing with flowers and shrubs. These frame a perfect lawn which leads around the house to the slightly sloped and terraced back garden. A brick wall provides privacy and continuity of style to the house. The sweet scent of lavender permeated the air as trousers brushed the foliage and yellow columbine skirted the opposite edges of the path.The back garden wraps around the property and includes flowers, shrubs and trees. There is a central water feature perfectly framed by brick and a terraced garden which divides the garden into loose rooms. Many of our group were enticed into this beautiful summer house. I don't know the English term for this building but many gardens our group visited had a serene little building such as this one. Robin's egg blue never looked as good as on this respite with its soft yellow interior. The summer house has a view all its own.The back of this home has this lovely patio which would have been even more inviting if the rain had held off but water makes plants and surfaces shine in photographs and no spirits were dampened.  This grouping of hostas set off the beautiful stonework and the hostas are thus out of the reach of any slugs which might want to chomp on the luscious leaves. Who could blame them? I may have actually heard about the origin of the name of this garden, Orchard Cottage, but I don't remember it.
The view was delightful from both the outside and the inside where tea was graciously served.
There is nothing like English tea and English hospitality.