Derry Watkins Garden in Spring
This is the garden of respected plantswoman Derry Watkins. Located in an idyllic valley just north of Bath, designed and built by Derry’s husband the architect Peter Clegg OBE, but planted by Derry with all sorts of special plants, many of which are available for sale from her Special Plants nursery on the same site. The soil is mostly clay which has been improved with regular mulching over the past 25 years, but nearer the house are areas of gravel for plants that prefer free drainage. There are also two ponds and a bog, a kitchen garden and a woodland garden, all providing a variety of planting conditions which Derry exploits to the maximum. The house is a traditional stone barn converted and extended by Peter. The garden is open on Tuesdays from spring until the end of October and on some Thursdays for the National Gardens Scheme. Visitors are provided with a map of the garden drawn by Peter, and a comprehensive plant list.
Location
Near Bath, UK
Shoot Date
Late April/Early May 2024
Photo Set
This is just a sample of a photo set containing over 80 fully captioned photos, including at least 4 plant combinations and at least 12 portraits of key plants. A picture of Derry is available if required and she is very happy to be interviewed by a writer and/or welcome a writer to visit the garden. This garden has featured in the press before, most recently as a backdrop setting for instructive features by Derry about seed saving, but the garden itself has not been published as a feature for over 10 years and to the best of my knowledge, never at this time of year. There is no specific writer linked to this photo set, though I can recommend some if required. There are no conditions agreed with the owners and they have no plans to move any time soon. The full set is available to download via WeTransfer on request.