You may also like<\/strong><\/p> The garden itself fits splendidly in its leafy South Downs setting. Structural, often wave-cut hornbeam<\/a> hedges divide up the space, across which a dizzying array of mostly perennials weave and flow; fiery Helenium<\/a><\/em> and Rudbeckia<\/em><\/a> promenade with pastel asters<\/a>, Phlox<\/em><\/a> or inky-blue Agapanthus<\/a><\/em>, while upright Atriplex hortensis <\/em>var. rubra<\/em> (purple orache) and Verbena<\/a> hastata<\/em> rise beside softly lush persicarias, all softened by swaying grasses such as Pennisetum<\/em><\/a>, Miscanthus<\/a> and Ampelodesmos<\/em>.<\/p> Founder Graham Gough trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, but in 1982, after a transformative visit to Sissinghurst Castle garden,<\/a> took a job with \u2018hellebore<\/a> queen\u2019 Elizabeth Strangman at Washfield Nursery in Kent. In 1997, he and wife Lucy Goffin established Marchants on a sloping two-and-a-half-acre site in Laughton, not far from Lewes. He started work on a garden beside the small sales area, planting mostly sun-loving perennials that would thrive in the heavy clay soil, combined in a style influenced by the developing European perennial movement<\/a> (it was via friendships made with growers across the continent that many plants were obtained).<\/p> The garden is the perfect shop window. Every year the team did an edit to remove any underperforming plants, as they knew it was vital to keep the garden fresh<\/p><\/blockquote> Graham also started raising his own selections, notably of Hylotelephium<\/a><\/em> (such as H. \u2018Marchants Best Red\u2019) and Agapanthus<\/em>. Marchants went from strength to strength, selling quality stock all raised on-site, attracting plant fanatics and garden designers looking for a relaxed, natural look.<\/p> By 2022, however, it was time for a change. Graham and Lucy, while still living on-site, decided to take a back seat and handed the running of Marchants to a team of staff and volunteers headed by Hannah Fox, Henry Macaulay and nursery co-ordinator Jean Christy.<\/p> Hannah, who has worked at Marchants for ten years, has been managing the nursery. \u201cIt felt daunting but exciting to take on one of the UK\u2019s best nurseries, but having worked with Graham, it meant it was like being handed the controls of a plane mid-air, rather than at take-off. Working in a team is great; we bounce ideas off each other and plants we grow have to justify inclusion to us all \u2013 they must be the best of the best,\u201d she says. A wander around the polytunnels, standing areas and cold frames confirms this. The team still propagate everything \u2013 around 600 different plants \u2013 just as Graham did. They have never done mail order, as stock is \u201cready when it is ready\u201d. They have been using peat-free<\/a> for four years, and the plants are grown hard to be tough.<\/p> The nursery areas include an attractive wooden shade house, with temptations including choice ferns such Polypodium glycyrrhiza<\/em> \u2018Malahatense\u2019, dark-purple flowered Geranium<\/a> nodosum<\/em> \u2018Whiteleaf\u2019 and Epimedium<\/em> \u2018Bieke\u2019, with constellations of starry yellow flowers in spring.<\/p> In the standing areas in late summer, stock of airy yellow-flowered Patrinia punctiflora<\/em> and exotic Hedychium<\/em> \u2018Tara\u2019, with its scented orange flower spikes, rub shoulders with various Agapanthus<\/em>, such as shining \u2018Kew White\u2019 and two Marchants\u2019 specials: \u2018Quink Drops\u2019 with heads of drooping bells, and dark-blue \u2018Marchants Cobalt Cracker\u2019.<\/p> \u201cIt\u2019s key to sell what is popular,\u201d says Hannah. \u201cWe look at Instagram and websites of other nurseries and ask visiting plantspeople and designers what they are looking for. Resilience is vital. Plants we sell must thrive. Customers tend to want a natural or meadow effect \u2013 we don\u2019t get the bedding plant brigade here.\u201d<\/p> Henry Macaulay, the head gardener, came to Marchants in 2020 after time working at Parham House and with Sarah Raven<\/a>. He looked after 1,600 taxa here. \u201cThe nursery\u2019s ethos, as established by Graham, has never changed. The garden, although beautiful, essentially works as a huge stock bed. It has always had a symbiotic relationship with the nursery,\u201d he explains.<\/p> Every year the team would do an edit to remove any underperforming plants, as they knew it was vital to keep the garden fresh. \u201cWe had to make sure each plant is easy to propagate and aesthetically different. In the garden, plants are not really grown in drifts, as they need to be separated for the best, strongest growth. It was about contrast rather than en-masse effects,\u201d he says.<\/p> The mix comprises around 20 per cent grasses, which bring movement to this breezy site, as well as long-lasting beauty \u2013 most were left standing over winter. They range from giant Arundo donax<\/em> to this year\u2019s \u2018must-have\u2019 plant, Melica ciliata<\/em>, seen in seemingly every garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show<\/a>. It has been popular with customers, thrives in sun or shade and looks great for months.<\/p> The garden\u2019s irregularly shaped beds are mounded for aesthetic and practical reasons \u2013 lifting plants up makes them easier to see and propagate, which provides valuable drainage above the heavy clay. Everywhere you look there are desirable plants, such as Sanguisorba hakusanensis<\/a><\/em> \u2018Lilac Squirrel\u2019, which Henry describes as the \u201cKen Dodd of the plant world\u201d for its feathery, pink dusters of flowers; Eryngium<\/a> pandanifolium<\/em>, with arching leaves and towering flower stalks; and Rosa<\/em> x odorata<\/em> \u2018Mutabilis\u2019, with its fluttering pink-and-apricot flowers over a long season. Silphium mohrii <\/em>stands out with branching stems of soft-yellow daisy heads, while Gladiolus<\/em> \u2018Ruby\u2019, with its hooded, raspberry-coloured blooms, grows ridiculously well on the heavy clay.<\/p> The increasingly erratic climate is creating challenges that have shaped the direction of the garden and nursery. Earlier this year, polytunnels at the top of the site flooded, and the increased rain encouraged slugs and snails, causing damage to the extent that bold annual Persicaria<\/a> orientalis<\/em> (kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate) was virtually wiped out. Henry even had to lift some asters to keep them alive. <\/p> In dry summers, the soil develops cracks \u201clike the Grand Canyon,\u201d says Henry, making watering hard. The team has noticed that Phlox<\/em>, Veronicastrum<\/a><\/em> and Bistorta<\/em><\/a> now struggle. \u201cTen years ago, we might have recommended customers plant these in full sun,\u201d says Hannah, \u201cbut now that\u2019s a risk.\u201d<\/p> The sad news that this powerhouse nursery and garden is closing in October 2024, will be a blow to many gardeners across the country. The innovation and quality that it stood for will not be forgotten. There is the remote possibility that, like other nurseries and plant collections, it may find a new owner who will wish to continue the legacy started by Graham and continued by Hannah, Henry and the team, but just in case, don’t miss the chance to visit this month, before this plantperson’s treasure trove closes its gates for the season, and possibly, forever. <\/p> Marchants will be open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays until 26th October 2024. The nursery will also be open Wednesdays in October – 9th, 16th and 23rd. <\/em><\/p> IN BRIEF<\/strong>![\"Head](\"https:\/\/c02.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2024\/10\/RBD100823_380_preview-edited-scaled.jpg\")
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