Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • The English Garden

    Sure of a Big SURPRISE

    Apr 21, 2021 4 minutes
    WORDS CLARE COULSON
    PHOTOGRAPHS
    MIMI CONNOLLY

    It’s hard to imagine a more bucolic slice of rural England than Milli Proust’s home in the hamlet of Bedham in West Sussex. The mid-17th-century timbered cottage, with leaded windows and a catslide roof, is surrounded by a nature reserve on the Low Weald known as The Mens, an ancient woodland rich with oaks, beech, hazel and field maples. “We are set in a dip so we have trees on every side,” Milli explains. “In April it sounds like you’re in a jungle – the birdsong echoes all around us. It’s incredible.”

    When her boyfriend, Ted, bought the cottage five years ago, the one-acre garden already had some good bones including an old hedgerow with spiraea, blackthorn, ivy, honeysuckle

    You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

    More from The English Garden

    The English Garden5 min read
    On A Wing And A Prayer
    Trudie Willis had a life-long love of butterflies. Her mother collected swallowtail caterpillars from along the Norfolk Broads to sell for a penny each at Norwich Market. As a child, Trudie was enthralled by the unique features and individual charact
    The English Garden5 min read
    To Mow Or Not To Mow?
    No Mow May is something of a Marmite topic for gardeners. While it’s easy for all of us to applaud local authorities leaving swathes of roadside verges and larger parks to become floriferous havens for wildlife, it’s a bit different when it comes to
    The English Garden3 min read
    The Rites of Spring
    Sometimes, even the most sensitive nature-lover needs a little help to properly grasp what is changing and growing around them. The Japanese have an ancient way of commemorating each tiny seasonal shift, dividing the calendar into 72 poetic micro-sea

    Related