Visitors to Bowmere Cottage might be rather surprised to discover a relaxed and charming garden, nestled behind a tall holly hedge. Created by Romy and Tom Holmes over the past 42 years from a once rather neglected site, the scene is now one of many different areas to enjoy, with verdant lawns, well-stocked herbaceous and shrub borders, roses scrambling over pergolas, a vegetable garden and two intimate courtyards. All of these features combine to make it a well-deserving winner of the Period Living Garden of the Year award 2022.
‘The property had been empty for many, many months before we moved here, and the garden was very wild. The lawns had only been mown occasionally and the gravel paths, cobbled drive and courtyards were green with weeds and grasses,’ Romy recalls.
Prior to purchasing
