Sissinghurst Castle Garden

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Sissinghurst Castle - house and gardens
Plan / accessiblity of Sissinghurst Castle Garden
BOOKS: About Sissinghurst
Sissinghurst - The White Garden
The White Garden, Sissinghurst
Moat Walk and Azalea Bank, Sissinghurst
The Cottage Garden, Sissinghurst
The Orchard
The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst
The Herb Garden, Sissinghurst
The Nuttery
The Lime Walk
Vita Sackville West and Harold Nicholson
BOOKS: Vita Sackville West - writing about gardens and gardening
BOOKS: Gardening at Sissinghurst
For the serious gardener....
Articles about Sissinghurst
The History of Sissinghurst
Sissinghurst - the BBC4 television programme
Blogging about Sissinghurst Castle Garden
Eat at Sissinghurst
Stay at Sissinghurst
Other accommodation in the area
Kent - the garden of England
Comments and Suggestions

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New links are being added to this site on a regular basis.

Sissinghurst Castle - house and gardens

Below you can find useful websites to learn more about the garden at Sissinghurst - and its garden rooms - created by Vita Sackville West and her husband Sir Harold Nicholson.

Sissinghurst Castle Garden lies in the Weald of Kent near Cranbrook, Goudhurst and Tenterden. The garden is now owned and maintained by the National Trust.

The garden is one of the most popular gardens in the UK. It's visited by people from all over the world. Some garden enthusiasts would put it first.

The garden at Sissinghurst was created in the 1930s by Vita Sackville-West, poet and gardening writer, and her husband Harold Nicolson, author and diplomat. Nicholson provided the design and the structure while Sackville West had the vision and the creativity about planting schemes and colour.

It was first opened to the public in 1938.

Sackville-West was a writer on the fringes of the Bloomsbury group. She was also gardening correspondent of The Observer newspaper and wrote very popular weekly columns which in turn made her garden very famous.

The garden comprises a series of "rooms". Each room has a particular theme, character and/or colour.

For an overview of the history of the site and the development of Sissinghurst from the 12th century to the present day see The History of Sissinghurst

National Trust | Sissinghurst Castle Garden: One of the world's most celebrated gardens, the creation of Vita Sackville-West and her husband Sir Harold Nicholson.
National Trust - Welcome to Sissinghurst Leaflet: Map of the garden and the property - including the walk around the Lake and the new vegetable garden
Sissinghurst Castle Garden - Plan of Garden / Accessibility: Indicates the varying levels of accessibility within an overall plan of the garden
Sissinghurst Castle Garden - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Sissinghurst Castle Garden
National Trust | Sissinghurst Castle Garden | Photo gallery: Photo gallery featuring Sissinghurst Castle Garden, one of the world's most celebrated 20th-century gardens.
Sissinghurst Castle Garden: The site contains stunning digital photography of the entire garden. It also has a plan of the garden and its different "rooms"
Horticulture Information - Sissinghurst Castle Garden: An extensive webarticle developed by Susan Mahr of the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
Very good descriptions of all parts of the garden together with plots of hotographs
Photos of Sissinghurst Castle Garden - PicturesOfEngland.com: Photos of Sissinghurst Castle Garden at PicturesOfEngland.com
Sissinghurst Garden - a review from the Garden and Landscape Guide: Sissinghurst Garden - a review from the Garden and Landscape Guide
Google Maps - Location of Sissinghurst Castle Garden: Access is via A262, 1 mile east of Sissinghurst village. There is a small signpost and then a long drive along a narrow lane (with passing places) up to the Castle
National Trust | Sissinghurst Castle Garden | Getting there: How to get to the garden
The Official Website of Cranbrook Kent England UK - Near Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Weald of Kent - Homepage: Official Homepage of Cranbrook, Kent, England, UK
Places to stay near to Sissinghurst.
National Trust | Events | Find an event: Events and things to do at Sissinghurst
Sissinghurst Garden - a review from the Garden and Landscape Guide: Sissinghurst Garden - a review from the Garden and Landscape Guide

Sissinghurst on Google Maps

Click the x in the box if you want to get rid of the directions bubble

Plan / accessiblity of Sissinghurst Castle Garden

this indicates which areas of the garden are accessible by wheelchairs

It has to be remembered that this garden was planned as a domestic garden and the size and scale of paths and steps were designed for those who originally enjoyed it. This has implications for how access can be managed today and what can happen in the garden.

This plan provides an indication of how accessible the garden is. You can download this accessibility plan for wheelchairs direct from the website

Parts of the garden are unsuitable for wheelchairs. Access to garden is also limited by use of timed ticket entrance - even for National trust members - at busy times of the year.

The paths are so narrow in some parts of the garden that the National Trust does not allow the use of any tripods or easels in the garden. However artists and photographers can apply to the National Trust to visit the garden on days when it is usually closed to the public. See the National Trust website for contact details

This shows a birds eye view of the garden at Sissinghurst in the Spring

BOOKS: About Sissinghurst

Sissinghurst - The White Garden

The White Garden, Sissinghurst

The White Garden is the most famous of Sissinghurst's garden 'rooms'. It's been created entirely from plants which have white flowers and/or silvery leaves. It looks very geometrical but in fact nothing except the small box hedges is square. The centrepiece has an ironwork arbor with Rosa mulliganii (a white climbing rose) growing over it which is simply spectular in the summer months.

Apparently, according to Adam Nicolson in the BBC4 documentary series on Sinssinghurst, there are a number of gardens in the USA which have replicated the white garden at Sissinghurst down to the last detail!

Garden Hopping: Sissinghurst Castle: The White Garden: Garden Hopping - Thoughts and images from the adventures of a would be garden design and horticultural student as she trips around the British countryside in search of gardens that delight.

Thursday, 19 June 2008
Sissinghurst Castle: The White Garden
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - White Garden 1.: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The White Garden
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - White Garden - 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The White Garden (2)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - White Garden - 3: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The White Garden(3)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - White Garden - 4: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The White Garden(4)

The White Garden in May

Moat Walk and Azalea Bank, Sissinghurst

The Moat walk is the sunken lawn which leads from the Cottage Garden to the moat on the perimeter of the garden. It runs parrallel to the nuttery. One one side there is a great bank of azaleas which are amazing when in full bloom. Opposite there are wisteria trained along the old brick wall which separates Moat walk from the orchard.

Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Moat Walk and Azalea Bank - 1: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Moat Walk and Azalea Bank (1)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Moat Walk and Azalea Bank - 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Moat Walk and Azalea Bank (2)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Moat Walk and Azalea Bank - 3: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Moat Walk and Azalea Bank (3)

Spring at Sissinghurst: Azaleas and Blossom in the Moat Walk

Sissinghurst Summer: Cottage Garden on an early August evening

The Cottage Garden, Sissinghurst

The garden outside the South Cottage where Vita and Harold used to live reminds me very much of the profusion of plants around a colour theme which can be seen in the planting at Giverny.

This is gardening on a domestic scale and yet it's riot of colour and plants in the summer. The colours used are emphatically not those typically seen in many cottage gardens in England. Reds, yellows and oranges are emphatic!

Garden Hopping: Sissinghurst Castle: The Cottage Garden: Garden Hopping - Thoughts and images from the adventures of a would be garden design and horticultural student as she trips around the British countryside in search of gardens that delight.

Wednesday, 18 June 2008
Sissinghurst Castle: The Cottage Garden
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Cottage Garden 1: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens Cottage Garden (1)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Cottage Garden 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens Cottage Garden (2)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Cottage Garden 3: Dave Parker's photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens Cottage Garden (3)

The Cottage Garden

The Orchard

Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Orchard - 1: Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens.
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Orchard - 2: Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens.
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Orchard - 3: Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens.
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Orchard in Autumn - 4: Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens.

Sissinghurst Autumn: View of the orchard and tower

A view of the Rose Garden from the Tower

a view from the tower, Sissinghurst Castle Garden

The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst

Garden Hopping: Sissinghurst Castle: The Rose Garden: Garden Hopping - Thoughts and images from the adventures of a would be garden design and horticultural student as she trips around the British countryside in search of gardens that delight.

Tuesday, 17 June 2008 Sissinghurst Castle: The Rose Garden
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Rose Garden: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst (1)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Rose Garden 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst (2)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Rose Garden 3: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst (3)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Rose Garden 4: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Rose Garden, Sissinghurst (4)

The Rose Garden

A sketch of the Herb Garden in September

The Herb Garden, Sissinghurst

Garden Hopping: Sissinghurst Castle: The Herb Garden: Garden Hopping - Thoughts and images from the adventures of a would be garden design and horticultural student as she trips around the British countryside in search of gardens that delight.
Friday, 20 June 2008Sissinghurst Castle: The Herb Garden
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Herb Garden - 1: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Herb Garden, Sissinghurst (1)
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Herb Garden - 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Herb Garden, Sissinghurst (2)

The Herb Garden

The Nuttery

Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Nuttery - 1: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Nuttery #1
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - The Nuttery - 2: Dave Parker's photographic tour of The Nuttery #2

The Nuttery in May

The Lime Walk

Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk: Dave Parker's Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk 1.
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk: Dave Parker's Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk 2.
Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk: Dave Parker's Photographic tour of Sissinghurst Castle Gardens - Lime Walk 3.

Vita Sackville West and Harold Nicholson

Writers and Gardens and the creators of the gardens at Sissinghurst

Vita Sackville West created the planting schemes for Sissinghurst...but she was also a novelist and poet as well as being the Honourable Lady Nicholson.

Vita Sackville-West - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Vita Sackville-West From Wikipedia
Harold Nicolson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Sir Harold George Nicolson KCVO CMG (November 21, 1886 - May 1, 1968) was a British diplomat, author, diarist, and politician. He was the husband of writer Vita Sackville-West
Vita Sackville-West: Novelist, poet, and consummate gardener, Victoria Mary (Vita) Sackville-West was born March 9, 1892, at Knole Castle, Sevenoaks, Kent and died on June 2, 1962, at Sissinghurst Castle. Vita married Harold Nicolson on October 1. 1912. Vita and Harold had two children, Benedict and Nigel Nicolson.
was born March 9, 1892, at Knole Castle, Sevenoaks, Ke
Vita Sackville-West: Great Garden Designers by Sarah Topp
Long Life - by Nigel Nicholson (extract): Descriptions of the key characters associated with Sissinghurst by Nigel Nicholson

BOOKS: Vita Sackville West - writing about gardens and gardening

books from Amazon

From 1946, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West wrote a gardening column in the Observer. The columns were later collected into a set of books published between 1951 and 1958.

Vita's extensive gardening knowledge, her intense passion for her subject and her lively literary flair make these classics of garden writing essential for any serious gardener's bookshelf.

About Vita Sackville West

Take a look at this well researched lens by Kimberly Adams

Travels with my Sketchbook in......Sissinghurst

These are blog posts from my sketching trips to Sissinghurst

Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: More sketching at Sissinghurst and a salutary tale: My first sketching trip to Sissinghurst - and sketch of the Moat Walk
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: The White Garden, Sissinghurst Castle Garden, Kent: We went to Sissinghurst Gardens in Kent on Friday and I produced the above sketch while sat in the corner of the White Garden. The White Garden only contains flowers which are white and rather a lot of 'silver/grey foliage plants.
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: Summer at Sissinghurst: At the end of July I visited the gardens at Sissinghurst Castle - one of the most noted gardens for flowers in England. After all the rain we've had this summer, the Cottage Garden and the White Garden were both quite spectacular.
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: Autumn at Sissinghurst: Sissinghurst Castle in Kent closes its house and gardens to the public a week on Sunday and does not reopen until March. I visited the garden late on Monday afternoon when it was very quiet and sketched the sixteenth century tower, in which Vita Sackville West had her writing room, and the grounds from the bank beyond the moat at the back of the gardens.
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: Spring at Sissinghurst: Here's my latest sketch of the garden at Sissinghurst. I've previously done posts about Summer At Sissinghurst and Autumn at Sissinghurst - now it's time for Spring at Sissinghurst! Above you can see a view of the Moat Walk with the vivid yellow azaleas on the right and the Japanese Wisteria on the left. All you're missing are the wonderful violet blue bluebells which were growing around the base of the azaleas - making a wonderful colour contrast.
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: Sissinghurst - and tips for time limited sketches: This is about sketching a view of the Cottage Garden at Sissinghurst and shows you my 'before' and 'after' versions of the same sketch. It also provides some tips for sketching within a time limit.
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: Sketching the Herb Garden at Sissinghurst: Yesterday we went to Sissinghurst. I left "he who must not bored while I sketch" reading The Economist and his latest book about The Eagles, while sat in the Chair in the Cottage Garden while I sketched down in The Herb Garden.

BOOKS: Gardening at Sissinghurst

These are the definitive contemporary books on gardening at Sissinghurst and the current planting schemes

For the serious gardener....

RHS Five Year Gardener's Record Book

by: *

Amazon Price: $0.01 (as of 02/16/2012)

A record book for gardeners, with space to record your garden's developing pleasures over five years.

It provides a central repository for horticultural notes, including plants to purchase; plants already acquired, and which nursery they came from; gardens to visit and reflections on those visited; and plants that grow well in your area.

It is designed to allow the user to see their garden's progress clearly: each month is separated into three sections (early, middle and late) so that you can record which plants do best for you, when they are at their peak and the methods you used to grow them.

Gardens and Flowers in Art - Resources for Artists

I'm an artist and usually develop information sites for artists. These particular sites will be of interest to anybody who likes gardens or flowers in art

Travels with a Sketchbook in......

When I travel, I sketch. When I sketch on my travels I record it here.

Plus information about the history and facilities of places I visit and lots of related links for those who want to know more

Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Articles about Sissinghurst

Articles about the BBC series on Sissinghurst are listed in the section devoted to the series.

The Observer, Sunday 31 October 1999 - Monty Don - Up the garden path: Everyone loved Vita Sackville-West's gardening column for 'The Observer'... except the writer herself.
The Observer, Sunday 22 August 2004 - Monty Don - All white now: Think of a white garden and Sissinghurst springs to mind. But you can create your own castle garden with an army of cream and ivory flowers, says Monty Don.
The past has gone - so bury it - Telegraph (31 Jul 2004): Instead of re-creating great gardens of former years, we should look to the future, argues Tim Richardson. References Sissinghurst.
The Observer, Sunday 22 July 2007 - Adam Nicholson - The quiet revolution behind the garden gate: The quiet revolution behind the garden gate
Vita Sackville-West was horrified when it was suggested the National Trust should run her beloved Sissinghurst. As the trust reinvents itself, her grandson Adam Nicolson explains why she need not have worried
Times Online Literary Supplement - The unfinished Sissinghurst (Jennifer Potter): A book review of Adam Nicolson's SISSINGHURST An unfinished history
I was the prince of Sissinghurst - Times Online: Adam Nicholson, (son of Nigel Nicholason and grandon of Harold and Vita) is a writer and traveller and has written a book which recalls his life at romantic Sissinghurst Castle in Kent

Includes a video which provides a tour of Sissinghurst
Let's do lunch - Times Online: Adam Nicholson is keen to revitalise the farmland at Sissinghurst, his ancestral home, and has had the bright idea of growing the food for the visiting public.

"The idea, simply, was this. If the National Trust, which since 1967 has owned not only the house and garden at Sissinghurst, but the 260 acres of farm-land around it, could be persuaded to use that land to grow lunch for the 115,000 people each year who eat in its restaurant, we could restore richness and vitality to this small slice of rural Kent."
Families allow a house to live - Times Online: Sissinghurst has been a family house since 1930 when my grandmother, the poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West, and my grandfather, Harold Nicolson, the historian and biographer, rescued the house and garden from ruin.
Kent News - Sissinghurst tensions laid bare for TV cameras: kentnews.co.uk is the county's regional and local website delivering the latest news, sport and weather. You can also reader digital editions of Kent on Sunday, Saturday Observer as well as your local mid week newspaper. Search for a job, cars and homes for sale in Kent as well as link through to yo
The Guardian, Saturday 27 September 2008 - Love Among the roses: Review: Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History
Kathryn Hughes is touched by an unsentimental memoir

Sissinghurst: An Unfinished Story is written with that heightened lyricism which seems to have become the default mode for the new nature writing. Beautiful in small portions, it can become too rich when poured over page after page, like one cream tea too many.
Unknown: Adam Nicolson takes award for Sissinghurst, a memoir of his family's ancestral home

The History of Sissinghurst

late 12th century Initial development of Sissinghurst. The name is Saxon and means "a clearing in the woods". The land was owned by the De Saxingherstes during medieval times.

before 13th century A stone Manor House with a moat was established. It became important in the local area.

14th century De Berham family owned Sissighurst Manor (for 200 years). King Edward 1 comes to stay

1480 Henry de Berham sells the manor to Thomas Baker (related by marriage to the Sackvilles of Knole)

Sir John Baker starts to make major developments
- the old stone manor house falls into ruins and is demolished
- an impressive brick mansion is built to replace it. This was one of the first large brick houses in Kent. (The long front of the house can be seen today - the remainder of the mansion has disappeared. What can still be seen originally housed the stables on one side and the servants quarters on the other)
- The archway and gatehouse are added at a later date.

1557 Queen Mary visits Sissinghurst Castle

1558 Sir John Baker dies

1560-70 Sir Richard Baker (John's son) builds a magnificent Elizabethan house with a double courtyard.
- the western entrance range which remains today was kept
- the tower was added

1573 Queen Elizabeth 1 spends 3 nights at Sissinghurst.

1661 The House has become neglected and remains so for the next 100 years

1756 Sissinghurst house was let to the government during the Seven Years War with France to serve as a prison camp. Over a period of 7 years it housed c. 3,000 French prisoners of war - mainly captured French seamen. Apparently the prisoners considered the house and surrounding land to be similar to a French chateau - and the site started to be known as a castle. However the term might have been used in an ironic sense as the living conditions in the dilapidated ruins were harsh and overcrowded

Wood in the house and furniture were used for firewood during the occupation and, as a result, the buildings were severely damaged. Two thirds of the buildings had to be demolished at the end of the war.

1764 - early 1800s The poor people of the parish used the remaining buildings for shelter and worked on the estate farm. From 1794 it was used as a workhouse. By the early 1800s all the buildings had been demolished except for the entrance range and the tower and some outbuildings.

1855 The Cornwallis family inherited the estate. The farmhouse was built.

1928 The estate was put up for sale - but did not find a buyer

1930 Vita Sackville-West visited the house - and bought the house and 400 acres of estate land. The entrance archway was reopened. The buildings remaining on the site were gradually restored.

Vita and her husband Harold Nicholson created the garden. Harold created the structure - designing the layout based on walls and buildings which remained in place following the dilapidation of the old structure. Vita developed the planting schemes for the different garden rooms.

1938 The garden was opened to the public for the first time.

1962 Vita died leaving husband Harold and two sons

1967 The future preservation of the garden was secured through its transfer to the National Trust

Sources: National Trust and various guides

National Trust | Sissinghurst | History: Sissinghurst occupies an ancient site. There has been a settlement here since the late 12th century, the name deriving from a Saxon clearing in the woods. During the early middle ages a stone manor house surrounded by a moat (of which two arms remain) was built.
The Heritage Trail - Sissinghurst Castle: Situated in the Weald of Kent is Sissinghurst Castle, once a grand Elizabethan Manor House, now sadly only a fraction of its former size, but still surrounded by beautiful countryside. The history of Sissinghurst Castle has always been very closely linked to the soil, and it was originally a medieval manor-farm.

Sissinghurst - Elizabethan Barn and fields by Katherine Tyrrell

BOOKS: Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History

Sissinghurst, An Unfinished History: The Quest to Restore a Working Farm at Vita Sackville-West's Legendary Garden

by: Adam Nicolson

Amazon Price: $4.00 (as of 02/16/2012)
Used Price: $3.82

WINNER OF THE ONDAATJE PRIZE 2009
The Royal Society of Literature's Ondaatje prize, which goes to the work of literature deemed to have most successfully evoked "the spirit of a place".

A fascinating account from award-winning author, Adam Nicolson, on the history of Nicolson's own national treasure, his family home: Sissinghurst.

Sissinghurst is world famous as a place of calm and beauty, a garden slipped into the ruins of a rose-pink Elizabethan palace. But is it entirely what its creators intended? Has its success over the last thirty years come at a price? Is Sissinghurst everything it could be?

The story of this piece of land, an estate in the Weald of Kent, is told here for the first time from the very beginning. Adam Nicolson, who now lives there, has uncovered remarkable new findings about its history as a medieval manor and great sixteenth-century house, from the days of its decline as an eighteenth-century prison to a flourishing Victorian farm and on to the creation, by his grandparents Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson, of a garden in a weed-strewn wreck.

Alongside his recovery of the past, Adam Nicolson wanted something else: for the land at Sissinghurst to live again, to become the landscape of orchards, cattle, fruit and sheep he remembered from his boyhood.Could that living frame of a mixed farm be brought back to what had turned into monochrome fields of chemicalised wheat and oilseed rape? Against the odds, he was going to try.

Usually ships in 24 hours

Sissinghurst - the BBC4 television programme

"'Sissinghurst' is a BBC Documentary series (shown on BBC4 on Sunday nights in February and March 2009) about the attempts of writer Adam Nicolson and his wife Sarah Raven to bring farming back into the heart of the estate and garden at Sissinghurst Castle in Kent, their historic home which is owned by the National Trust and was moulded into its present form by Nicolson's grandmother Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson back in the 1930s.

It presents an interesting insight into the nature of the relationship between the donor family - who still live at Sissinghurst - and the National Trust and their managers and staff who actually run Sissinghurst

The programmes were available on iplayer for a time but are no longer accessible. This is the list of the episodes. Below are links to some of the reviews of the programme

Episode 1: 1/8. Things don't go smoothly for Sarah as she tries to supply produce for the restaurant.
Episode 2: 2/8. Adam seizes the opportunity to make Sissinghurst look more like a farm from the front.
Episode 3: 3/8. Head gardener Alexis raises objections to Adam's plans, while Sarah's cooks a trial menu.
Episode 4: 4/8. As the garden-visiting season approaches, Sissinghurst's visitor numbers increase.
Episode 5: 5/8. Progress on the farm project is slow and Adam is growing impatient.
Episode 6: 6/8. The National Trust has appointed a farmer, and there is good news from the vegetable plot.
Episode 7: 7/8. Adam makes some intriguing discoveries for his book about Elizabethan Sissinghurst.
Episode 8: 8/8. The garden closes for the winter and Adam surprises Sarah with a trip in a balloon.

BBC - BBC Four Programmes - Sissinghurst: Series about the attempts to bring farming back into the heart of the Sissinghurst estate
Kent Messenger | News | Days in the life of... Sissinghurst: A TELEVISION series featuring a famous garden and farm is to be aired later this month.

The film was made over several months at Sissinghurst Castle Garden and Farm, as well as in the village.
UK Film and Television News - KEO Explores Sissinghurst For BBC 4: UK Film and Television News - KEO Explores Sissinghurst For BBC 4

(apologies for the awful intrusive soundtrack which accompanies this item)
Thinking Gardens - SISSINGHURST - BBC 4 reviewed by Darryl Moore: To give a show about the famous estate a contemporary relevance, the producers obviously felt that it needed to be pitched as a battle between the current custodians the National Trust, in their role preserving the nations heritage, and its previous family heritage. A struggle between conservative tradition and progressive change, with competing factions attempting to claim the soul of Sissinghurst as their own. As if that were not enough, the series also managed to shoehorn in as many aspects of popular BBC programmes as possible, creating a melange of The Apprentice, Master Chef, Gardeners World and Who Do You Think You Are?
The Observer, 16 November 2008 - Christmas at Sissinghurst: Christmas at Sissinghurst by Andrew Purvis
While visitors to the gardens peer through the windows, Sarah Raven cooks an early Christmas lunch in her national trust kitchen
The Independent - 28 February 2009 - Secateurs at dawn at Sissinghurst: Secateurs at dawn at Sissinghurst By Andy McSmith
Ignore the idyllic facade: Sissinghurst, the country house made famous by Vita Sackville-West, has been rocked by a row between the writer's family and the National Trust.

Sissinghurst Castle, Kent, a country mansion with one of the most beautiful gardens in Britain, draws lesbians from across the world seeking intellectual inspiration. It has become an unlikely battle ground in the class war, although this is not class war as Marx or Lenin knew it. It is fought over
Tension at Sissinghurst as Poirot meets River Cottage | Opinion | The First Post: Am I going mad? Don't answer that. Merely clarify one thing. Is BBC4's new Sunday night show Sissinghurst a fly-on-the wall docu-series about the various ways in which the National Trust resists the pressure for Vita Sackville West's beloved Kentish castle and gardens to be hauled into River Cottage-ville with their own sustainable veg plot and sheep farm?
The Guardian - review of Sissinghurst on TV: Sam Wollaston on Sissinghurst,
TV redeems itself? 'Sissinghurst' on BBC 4 - Landscape Juice Network: There's recently been a forum discussion about gardening on television - we're all a bit depressed by the dumbing down....

tonight we watched the BBC 4 programme 'Sissinghurst', basically Vita Sackville-West's grandson and Sarah Raven battle the National Trust (in a very polite and pleasant way - this is England, after all, so don't expect to see Raven threatening the premises manager with a Magnum because the floor in the cafe is too yellow - no matter how much she might like to). I had high hopes for this one, but feel a bit non-plussed after watching the first episode - the National Trust hasn't come out as the big baddie, but then again, they'd hardly want to come across badly....

The vegetable garden

Blogging about Sissinghurst Castle Garden

Human Flower Project - Sissinghurst: Now I See It. Now You Do, Too: The Human Flower Project, directed by author and sociologist Julie Ardery

......The wonder of Sissinghurst is that it's approachable. You're never likely to have a plot this big, nor the money to pay the wages, but you can take away the idea. Each part of the garden has a character, a focus, some feature that distinguishes it. Its size varies-some small intimate corner; a trough; a wall; a walk; a field......
Tea at Sissinghurst Castle %uFFFD The Ravenous Rambler: The Ravenous Rambler managed a short visit today to Sissinghurst Castle in Kent. This is one of my favourite places.
Trust tracks down its plants in hunt for treasures | An Inconvenient Blog: Environmental news and guides
Experts and volunteers armed with satellite positioning systems and digital cameras yesterday began what is billed as the UK's biggest plant count....In the coming months some of Europe's famous gardens will be surveyed, including Sissinghurst in Kent
Transatlantic Plantsman: The wrong daffodils: Plants, books on plants and using plants - from Graham Rice in Pennsylvania (USA - zone 5) and in Northamptonshire (UK - zone 8)
Visiting UK - Trains from London to Sissinghurst: travel advice

Eat at Sissinghurst

Eating at Sissinghurst seriously improved after the project to start the Vegetable Garden, You can also:
* Eat in the Granary Restaurant
* attend the Farmers Markets
* arrange to have a Christmas party dinner there

National Trust | Sissinghurst | Granary Restaurant: The new Granary Restaurant is now open at Sissinghurst.

You can even eat at Sissinghurst after the gardens have closed for the winter

November - 20 December 2011: The Granary Restaurant and National Trust Shop are open 11am-4pm Fridays to Tuesdays 2011.
National Trust | Sissinghurst | Christmas Parties: Sissinghurst Christmas Parties - Available for lunchtime or evening bookings, any day of the week. On offer is a three course lunch or evening meal which will have been made using produce grown and reared on the Sissinghurst Castle estate.
National Trust | Sissinghurst | Sissinghurst Smallholding Fair: The Sissinghurst Smallholding Fair was held in August 2011 and was a chance to buy good quality equipment, plants, animal housing, feeds, poultry and livestock direct from the producers.

View of Sissinghurst from the entrance to the Vegetable garden

From left to right you can see:
* the Elizabethan Barn (and how big it is!)
* the low building which is the restaurant which overlooks the fields
* the tower in the garden
* the oast houses which are now the museum

Stay at Sissinghurst

Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse - Welcome: Sue and Frazer are delighted to welcome you to Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse. Our doors are now open to guests, and we are delighted to announce that we are now rated as a 5 star B&B.

Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse Sissinghurst, nr Cranbrook, Kent TN17 2AB, England
+44 (0)1580 720992
info@sissinghurstcastlefarmhouse.com
Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse - History: The Farmhouse is a unique and special place, just 100 yards from the World famous gardens of Sissinghurst. The gardens were created by Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson between 1930 and the early 1960's.
Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse - Accommodation: The Farmhouse has seven double bedrooms...
Sissinghurst Castle Farmhouse - How To Book: details of room rates

Other accommodation in the area

Perfect as a Leeds Castle or Sissinghurst Bed and Breakfast: Wilderness Bed and Breakfast - 3 self-contained rooms
Both The Orchard and The Hopper`s Room are separate to the 15th century former farmhouse and having their own showers they are ideal for longer stays. Equally as unique is the suite on the top floor of the main house, full of period charm.

Kent - the garden of England

Around about Sissinghurst Castle Gardens

Information about the area for people wanting to visit Sissinghurst

Kent - The Garden of England - South East England Website: Kent The Garden of England A stunning variety of landscapes await the visitor to Kent,...
Visit Kent | Official Kent Tourism & Travel Website For Kent Tourists: Kent - The garden of England, English countryside at its best. A landscape of rolling hills and wooded valleys, orchards and vineyards, splendid castles, gardens and many historic houses. The website for everything Kent. Places to stay in Kent, days out in Kent, places to visit in Kent
Kent - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Kent From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kent Tourism - planning your journey: Getting to Kent
Kent Maps & Travel: Kent - The garden of England, English countryside at its best - maps of Kent
Historic Kent - Early Invaders: Historic-Kent.co.uk The premier website for SE England - visit Kent today!
Kent - The Garden of England: Photographs of Kent - Oast houses and hops!
Sissinghurst - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Sissinghurst (village) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sissinghurst is situated with Cranbrook to the south, Goudhurst to the west, Tenterden to the east and Staplehurst to the north. It sits just back from the A229 which goes from Rochester to Hawkhurst.

Other Great Gardens in the UK

BOOK: 1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die

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Garden lovers and discriminating travelers will relish this armchair tour of the most beautiful and interesting gardens around the world. Succinct descriptions with stunning color photos showcase the creations of the world's outstanding landscape gardeners, architects, and garden designers. From Spain's famous gardens of the Moorish Alhambra at Granada to San Diego's Healing Garden, created for patients at the San Diego Children's Hospital, this lavishly illustrated guide will delight both lovers of natural beauty and hands-on gardeners. Among the many gardens pictured and described in this beautiful volume are--

In the United States and Canada: Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, Boscobel in New York's Hudson Valley, Williamsburg Gardens in Virginia, Magnolia Plantation and its Gardens near Charleston, South Carolina, Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin in Wisconsin, the Toronto Botanical Garden, Pacific Undersea Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia, and many more. . .
In England: The Japanese Garden in London's Holland Park, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, Shakespeare's Garden in Stratford, London's Victoria and Albert Museum Gardens, and many more. . .
In France: The Gardens of Versailles outside Paris, the Garden of Claude Monet at Giverney, Chateau de Vauville in Cherbourg, and many more. . .
The rest of the world: Boboli Gardens in Florence, Italy, Potsdam Gardens near Berlin, Germany, the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto, Japan, and hundreds more.

In addition to photos and a textual description, each entry cites special features such as fountains and architecture, the garden's size in acres, and the names of the garden's designers. The garden descriptions are organized geographically by country. More than 800 breathtaking color photos and illustrations.

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Great Gardens elsewhere

Botanical Art - Resources for Artists

I'm an artist and usually develop information sites for artists. These particular sites will be of interest to anybody who likes botanical art.

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Comments and Suggestions

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DonD Jan 30, 2012 @ 9:17 am | delete

Such a beautiful garden above and I like the photos they are worth looking. Excellent lense.

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---Chazz Jan 24, 2012 @ 9:44 am | delete

What a beautiful lens -- a pleasure to read and a joy to look at. Blessed and featured on "Wing-ing it on Squidoo."

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jenniferteacher Oct 23, 2011 @ 4:54 am | delete

What a great lens! I visited quite a few castles around England this past summer, but I haven't even heard of this one until now. I'll be back over in February, but that probably isn't the best time to see this one. :-(

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Bibliophilia Oct 23, 2011 @ 5:50 am | delete

It's also not open to the public in February! The season for the gardens lasts from March to October.

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franstan Aug 11, 2011 @ 6:42 pm | delete

Wonderful lens. Blessings from a Squid Angel on the Back to School trip

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naturegirl7 Aug 11, 2011 @ 7:57 am | delete

I simply must visit this garden some day. Thanks for the wealth of information about it. Sprinkled with dust from the Angel of the farmyard on a Back to School Field Trip.

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puerdycat Jul 2, 2011 @ 10:09 am | delete

Thanks for this, well these wonderful treats!

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sousababy Jul 2, 2011 @ 9:58 am | delete

Your photos of the white garden, herb garden and nuttery were extremely effective in showcasing this gorgeous garden. Nice that it has remained open to the public since 1938. I don't know why but I love white flowers. Great lens!

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WhiteOak50 May 28, 2011 @ 8:27 am | delete

I am traveling around Squidooville and just stopped by this neighborhood and noticed this fantastic page!! So for this Memorial Day Weekend Road Trip, I wanted to leave you with a Blessing from a SquidAngel Have a safe and beautiful Memorial Day!

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debnet Apr 1, 2011 @ 12:16 pm | delete

Great look at this garden through the lens. I'd never heard of it and I've lived in Hampshire all my life!! Now planning a day out to visit and can't wait!

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poddys Apr 1, 2011 @ 8:39 am | delete

Brilliant lens, love the photos and I think you covered every apect of Sissinghurst. I haven't been, but it's only about 1 1/2 hours away and we are National Trust members. I forwarded the lens link to Debbie and hopefully we can make a day of it later this summer. Blessed by an angel and well deserved.

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ShirleySunshine Mar 23, 2011 @ 6:08 pm | delete

I would love a visit here too, but your Lens is the next best thing, excellent work! Thank you for this great information, the sketches are lovely too!

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WhitePineLane Feb 5, 2011 @ 11:46 pm | delete

This is SUCH a well-done lens! Very impressive amount of info, and I love the newly added history section. (And thank you so much for so prominently featuring my Vita Sackville-West lens). I love your sketches sprinkled throughout (which lead me to your blog, which I love as well)! Very enjoyable lens!

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Jewelsofawe Jan 5, 2011 @ 3:20 pm | delete

Love the gardens!

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ChrisDay Jan 2, 2011 @ 2:34 pm | delete

Awe-inspiring - you really do capture the essence of the garden - a ray of sunshine in a cold, dark winter!

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triathlontraining Dec 27, 2010 @ 10:51 pm | delete

Beautiful and inspiring! I love gardens.

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Tipi Dec 27, 2010 @ 9:01 pm | delete

What a glorious place. The bird's eye view made me think the birds must pass over the Sissinghurst Castle Gardens just for the joy of it. Amazing work that had to take many hours and well worth your efforts!