A cup of coffee and a rose or two

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It’s a damp old morning in my corner of the UK, so what better thing to do than move on to my second coffee (ok- third!) of the day and wander through some roses with you?  A few weeks back, just before the colours started to turn, I made a Sunday afternoon visit to The Gardens at Wynyard Hall. In the profusion of colour that this Autumn has been, I almost forgot all about it.

Sir John Hall bought Wynyard Hall Estate in 1987 and has turned it into a truly sumptuous venue. I was lucky enough to attend a wedding there a few years ago and the stained glass panels high in the beautifully imperious house remain a warm memory.  Many years in the planning, Sir John says that even as a boy he dreamed of owning his own rose garden. He has enlisted RHS award winning landscape architect Alistair Baldwin and rose expert Michael Marriott from David Austin Roses to help make his dream come true.

I think he probably succeeded

I think he probably succeeded

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The setting is a nicely weathered wall garden, and the planting is lush.  Newly opened this year, it was designed to be a rose garden for the 21st century.  It takes inspiration from the geometric order of Persian grids and the Moorish influence of a bubbling rill, crowned by the raised beds of the traditional English kitchen garden.

Of course, there are tea rooms

Of course, there are tea rooms

And a South Border to attract the butterflies

And a South Border to attract the butterflies

An old bell set high in the wall

An old bell set high in the wall

Wonderful Cosmos

Wonderful Cosmos

And a handsome rill
With interesting shadows
And beauties such as this!

You can wander through to the gardens of the Grand Marquee, if there is not an event in progress.  The view sweeps down to the lake and there is still more planting to be admired.  A little old, and something new.

Not much beats an old urn

Not much beats an old urn

Except maybe an urn in an archway
Surrounded by lovely planting
And hot borders
Delicately blushing Cosmos

Delicately blushing anemone

And thistle delight!

And thistle delight!

Set beside glorious old walls

Set beside glorious old walls

But inevitably the stars of the show are the roses.  The visitor guide lists 135 species but I am not going to attempt to name them all for you. (huge sighs of relief!)  We’ll just share a small gallery together.  I hope you enjoy them!

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114 comments

  1. You know that I would be very happy to join you here especially given there is also a tearoom. You have brought back the smell and warmth of summer to my chilly house today – thank you Jo 🙂
    PS I got quite excited when I saw there is accommodation at Wynyard Hall, until I saw the price 😦

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    1. No mention of ‘cheap’ anywhere in this post, Jude. The Wynyard Estate is for the upper echelons, though we could probably afford a cuppa. 🙂 I’ll find you a nice little B&B nearby.

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  2. più che rose sembrano peonie! sono magnifiche, sei fortunata ad avere una così bella giornata nella tua umida Inghilterra per godere di così tante belle cose!
    un grosso bacio

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  5. Just gorgeous. It was damp here this morning too but it has brightened up now – though I was still in need of this pick-me-up with a quick cups as I dash in and out between engagements!

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  6. Oh my…thank you so much for brightening up a dull, rainy day with such a gorgeous profusion of colour…and roses, my favourite too! Lovely Jo, so lovely… 🙂

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  8. what lovely photos to enjoy this cold damp morning! But I am not complaining about the weather as we need all the rain and snow we can get!
    Have a lovely day!

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    1. Dad had just gone, after Sunday lunch, Cathy, and we only had an hour or so to pop along before closing time. Well worth it! 🙂 Did you have a great birthday? You would like my walk this week. A mix of Autumn colour and Halloween.

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      1. I had a wonderful birthday, Jo, thank you very much. I will post about it soon, I hope. I really need to get back into my blogging routine. I will have to drop by to your walk this week. Will do so soon!! Love and hugs, and happy Halloween, again! xxx

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      3. I have no excuse now, Jo, as I just returned yesterday from two days in Charlottesville with Sarah, and I have nothing urgent on my horizon except house projects. I did just post the first of many posts I’ll be doing on the rice terraces in China, one of the last places I went before leaving and for which I have 1000s of pics!! I still have so much to write on Myanmar and I’ll try to throw in some cocktail hours and something about my birthday on my USA blog soon. 🙂 Thanks for your caring, Jo! 🙂

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  15. Beautiful, Jo! You’ve helped cheer me up; it’s been raining here since yesterday. The roses are gorgeous and I love the wild-ness of the flowers growing along the old wall and arch.

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    1. The rain is pattering off my windows right now, Ann, and I’m hoping it’ll stop in time for me to go out for a lunchtime celebration, but this seemed a useful (ish) thing to do with the time. 🙂 Thanks for sharing it with me.

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      2. Thanks, hon. 🙂 No- same little digital but I upgraded to Premium because I ran out of photo memory, Ann. When I was ‘playing’ I accidentally lost the sidebar and all the trappings. The result seems to be bigger photos which I rather like, and I’m reluctant to reinstate the sidebar (even if I knew how- such a techno whizz! 🙂 )

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