A visit to Great Dixter, August 2026

Great Dixter, August 2026

The weather was forecast to be wet and possibly stormy, so we travelled with raincoats and umbrellas and extra layers of clothes. As it turned out, the weather was hot and sunny – a perfect day for garden visiting.

Unlike some other gardens, including many of our own, Dixter was full of colour and a profusion of planting. Nathaniel Lloyd and Edwin Lutyens had had the foresight to install a reservoir when the gardens were first built and this has served them well. The gardening team have focussed watering on new planting and stressed areas, which has clearly been a successful strategy. The intensively gardened areas like the Long Border have been watered end to end four times since January and the effects of this can be seen in the photos below.

Salvia and Persicaria at Great Dixter, August 2026
Salvias and Persicaria providing colour throughout
Continue reading A visit to Great Dixter, August 2026

A visit to Great Dixter, July 2025

Friends of Great Dixter, July 2025

Fresh off a flight from America, Fergus Garrett addressed approximately 300 people seated on hay bales in the Plant Fair Field, in one of the regular Friends events held at Great Dixter. He had returned that morning from a 20 day stay, lecturing and touring, with some of the stay devoted to Chanticleer. Fergus drew comparisons between the gardening practice there and at Great Dixter. At Chanticleer they artificially oxygenate their compost heaps to accelerate the process, whereas at Dixter these are left to decompose naturally. He also drew attention to how little water is used at Dixter – at most, the Long Border has been watered three times this year – but at Chanticleer watering is a regular feature of garden maintenance.

Continue reading A visit to Great Dixter, July 2025