Visiting The Peto Garden at Iford Manor

I first heard of Ilford Manor Gardens earlier this year when attending a talk at the Garden Museum in London where Ilford head gardener Steve Lanin was in conversation. I immediately began following him on Instagram and making plans to visit Ilford during the summer.

Arriving at Iford Manor Gardens

Arrival at Iford Manor, requries a drive, or as we did, cycle through the small village of Westwood, passing green pastures redolent of the English countryside described in a Jane Austen novel. Shortly after this, you are greeted by an imposing stature of Britannia sitting majestically upon a heavy stone bridge supposedly built in the 1400’s.  Beneath the bridge, the frothing waters of the river Frome hurriedly pass by and alongside it stands the imposing Ilford Manor.

This solid upright no nonsense kind of building has a valley position on the borders of Wiltshire and Bath and NE Somerset. The privately owned manor house is not open to visitors but it’s carefully designed gardens are. It was these we had come to see on a mercifully mild and sunny early August day following one of the wettest Julys in history.

The walled gardens are tucked behind a thick set wall shielding them from the curious gaze of the casual passer by.  The entrance is a small door, built into a thick stone wall making what lays beyond even more intriguing. So small and unobtrusive is the door, that we were unsure we were even in the right place.  Don’t be fooled by this humble entrance though. Once inside you are greeted with a splendid courtyard, home to the cheerful courtyard café and restaurant.  Both are excellent lunch venues in their own right.  A little further on from the cafe, rich garden splendour awaits.

The Gardens

The manor and gardens were bought by the architect Harold Peto in 1899.  He was especially attracted to Italian gardens and you can see this influence everywhere.  Cypress trees, stone monuments and statues and steps leading to terraces, patios and even cloisters might make you think you are in an Italian garden in the heart of Tuscany. The clever use of walkways, and statues and pools combined with  flowers and plants bring  everything together in glorious harmony.

“Old buildings or fragments of masonry carry one’s mind back to the past in a way that a garden of flowers only cannot do. Gardens that are too stony are equally unsatisfactory.” Harold Ainsworth Peto

The garden feels like a series of very well designed rooms, each one leading seamlessly into the next.  There are discoveries to be made around every corner and behind every well placed statue or beautiful shrub and from every terrace.  Hidden paths and gates lead you forward. There are cool areas with pools of deep green water, wet mossy rocks, verdant ferns and shade loving plants. Stepping stones encourage visitors to be playful and curious.

The garden reminded me of the gardens in Elizabeth’s Armins ‘The Enchanted April’.  This was enhanced by the second flush of Wisteria gently basking in the summer sun, the familiar scent dancing on the breeze.

“All down the stone steps on either side were periwinkles in full flower, and she could now see what it was that had caught at her the night before and brushed, wet and scented, across her face. It was wisteria. Wisteria and sunshine ” – from The Enchanted April

The garden is so cleverly placed in a valley that it is hidden from the sign of those trying to find it.  The benefit of this of course is that from the garden, vistas stretch long and wide into bucolic english countryside and views from the terraces are sublime.

The garden is a joy to all the senses.  The sound of trickling water from the carefully placed water features, and the soft coo of wood pigeons, the pleasing mix of colours and textures throughout the garden and the delicious scents from the flowers fresh from recent August rain.  In fact it made me think of the same scents you might find when entering an expensive perfumery, except all these were completely natural woven together by nature.

Their are orchards filled with fruit trees and winding wooded paths which take you to the edges of the garden.  The eye is led along balustrades or around corners and through gates. This is a garden for the inquisitive, there is so much to discover.

The Peto Garden at Iford Manor is a place of peace and tranquility.  Children under 10 are not permitted entry to the gardens which might not suit some, but I think it adds to the calm.  Visitors dawdle peaceably from one garden room to another, unhurried and unencumbered, succumbing to the charm of this special place.

As we wandered through the gardens we mused on when we had become the kind of 50 something’s who enjoyed visiting gardens and having lunch in café’s.  We decided it had been gradual, creeping upon us as we tried to fill our own summer garden with home grown cosmos and dahlias.  For a moment we worried it made us middle aged (of course we are middle aged) but if middle age and loving gardens means seeking out places as peaceful and creative as Ilford Manor Gardens then we decided we don’t mind one bit.

I remember from the Garden museum talk, Steve Lannin saying he could go days without ever leaving the gardens. I can see why.  There is so much to lose yourself in and so much to discover.  There is a gentle tranquility here which I believe is mostly only found in gardens.