In brief<\/strong>Name<\/strong> Old Rectory. What<\/strong> A re-imagining of an 18th-century garden, given a 21st-century twist. Where<\/strong> Northamptonshire. Size<\/strong> Three acres. Soil<\/strong> Heavy clay, prone to winter waterlogging. Slightly alkaline. Climate<\/strong> Frequent cold spells in winter, when it is also at its wettest. Hardiness zone<\/strong> USDA 8.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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The property has been home to Emma Wise and Alan Kennedy since 2013. Then, the garden was just a mossy<\/a> lawn edged by shrubs, with a pond<\/a> set away from the house, yet the couple sensed a spark of something special. \u201cAlan is interested in gardens, and was on the lookout for somewhere with potential, somewhere we could create an opportunity,\u201d says Emma.<\/p>\n

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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
They were introduced to Anoushka Feiler of garden design studio Bestique, who had previously specialised in city gardens. \u201cI was excited but slightly nervous,\u201d she says. \u201cA good thing, as it meant I thought long and hard about the work. I knew it was a chance to show what I was capable of.\u201d Alan and Emma gave her an open brief, but wanted a special garden. \u201cWe felt it was important the Georgian origins were reflected in the design and we realised the church needed to be considered,\u201d says Emma.<\/p>\n
Anoushka took her lead from the house. \u201cI\u2019m a contemporary designer,\u201d she says. \u201cI don\u2019t recreate the past, but a period house needs to be connected to its garden, while suiting a modern family.\u201d Her research into the style of the era identified six elements that make up the \u2018ideal\u2019 Georgian garden: kitchen garden, orangery, menagerie, pleasure garden, park and orchard \u2013 and she has incorporated all in some way. \u201cThe plan has a strong structure based on a cross, which relates to the church,\u201d she says. \u201cIt also allowed me to break up the site.\u201d In an additional nod to the church, she has also opted for a heaven-and-hell theme in the Fire Garden, with hot colours and firepit<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Read more below. For our full feature on the garden pick up our December issue of Gardens Illustrated<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n
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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nThe swimming pond<\/a> \u2013 which Emma says they have even used on Christmas<\/a> Day \u2013 features a floating sun deck that is perfect for enjoying the Pleasure Garden throughout summer. In winter, the papery heads of Hydrangea macrophylla<\/em> and seedheads of Miscanthus<\/em> grasses link back visually to the hornbeam hedging and a huge veteran beech.<\/p>\n
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$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> \u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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Winter brings the strong structure of Anoushka\u2019s design to the fore. Immaculate hedges divide up the site, with arches framing views and focal points. Cutting through the garden are two wide gravel paths in a cruciform shape, with a striking wood-framed glasshouse<\/a> marking the point where they meet.<\/span><\/p>\n
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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nAn elegant all\u00e9e of hornbeams<\/a> leads to a bespoke wood-framed glasshouse. The layout gives a hint of French garden formality, an element Emma and Alan asked to be incorporated. The detailing is superb, from the cobble-edged, brick-lined gravel<\/a> path<\/a> to the step handrails forged by blacksmith Michelle Parker, who also made the entrance gates.<\/p>\n
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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nDomes of yew close to the house help to anchor the loose planting, which in winter is dominated by tall, biscuity plumes of Miscanthus<\/em><\/a> that help soften the architecture. Structure<\/a> is strong throughout the garden, its layout unified by a cruciform motif that celebrates the neighbouring church.<\/p>\n
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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nThe Orchard has Renaissance-inspired scrolling pathways that flow around young fruit trees, and creates a transition from the straight lines of the Flower Garden to the wilder Pleasure Garden. In spring and early summer, the grass comes alive with bulbs<\/a> and wildflowers<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nFarther from the house, the feel becomes less formal with relaxed planting and flowing lines. In Anoushka\u2019s reimagining of a Georgian pleasure garden, a swimming pond with its Giverny-inspired oak bridge \u2013 requested by owner Alan \u2013 is screened by tall grasses<\/a>, such as Miscanthus sinensis<\/em> \u2018Gracillimus\u2019, and Hydrangea macrophylla.<\/em><\/p>\n
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$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> \u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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The relaxed Menagerie garden was designed to attract wildlife \u2013 in contrast to 18th-century menageries that celebrated the exotic<\/a>. Here Anoushka has used several birches, including a pair of multi-stemmed Betula nigra<\/em>, underplanted with a lush woodland mix of ferns<\/a>, hellebores<\/a> and bold Heuchera villosa.<\/em> The trees\u2019 shaggy stems are echoed in the texture of the statue by sculptor Carol Peace.<\/p>\n
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$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> \u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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Massed clumps of evergreen<\/a> Libertia grandiflora<\/em> beside clipped balls of beech, which retain their winter russet foliage and provide structure. Between these are the sinuous branches of a multi-stemmed Liquidamba<\/em>, which in autumn glows orange<\/a> and red, while behind, soft Miscanthus<\/em> seedheads sparkle.<\/p>\n
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$\"""\"$ <\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> \u00a9 Clive Nichols<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\nThe rill<\/a>, which in summer is filled with miniature waterlilies, runs through the Flower Garden, giving the illusion that it flows right up to the door of the house. In fact, a sunken lawn and terrace separate the house from this garden with its rectangular flower beds and wood-framed glasshouse.<\/p>\n
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USEFUL INFORMATION<\/strong> Address<\/strong> Old Rectory, Preston Deanery Road, Quinton, Northamptonshire NN7 2ED. Web<\/strong> garden4good.co.uk<\/a> Open<\/strong> The garden opens in summer for the NGS and for groups by arrangement. See website for details. Find out more about Anoushka\u2019s work at bestique.co.uk<\/a><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n
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By Daisy Bowie-Sell Published: Thursday, 01 December 2022 at 12:00 am Behind high hedges on a quiet lane in the Northamptonshire village of Quinton, beside the parish church with its 13th-century tower, sits the former rectory; a stone, Georgian house with three acres of garden. The first hint of what lies within are a pair […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":0,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"6"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Daisy Bowie-Sell Published: Thursday, 01 December 2022 at 12:00 am Behind high hedges on a quiet lane in the Northamptonshire village of Quinton, beside the parish church with its 13th-century tower, sits the former rectory; a stone, Georgian house with three acres of garden. The first hint of what lies within are a pair…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/17264"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/gardensillustrated\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}