ARTS & CRAFTS

‘Our garden is full of nature’s gifts’

Gardening can seem a rather serious business, but even a brief stroll in Earl and Susan’s garden shows that fun and flowers make good bedfellows.

‘One of the nicest visitors’ comments was made by a young father with his daughters, when he remarked that a bed of tulips, primulas and wallflowers was like a big smile,’ recalls Susan.

There is much in this heartwarming city garden to raise a smile, from the small, playful sculptures and unexpected objects secreted in even less likely spots, to magnificent and intriguingly bohemian follies that overlook lawns, borders and pond alike. ‘Lacking a grand estate to play with, we express grandiose ideas on a small scale,’ says Susan.

Chim-chimeny

‘When we added land, we needed a focal point’

The voyage of discovery starts along a line of countersunk stepping stones that lead across the lawn from the couple’s 1960s house to the main garden, where an outsized willow reaches down to brush a Baroque-style temple. ‘This