Gardeners have fewer excuses than most to struggle with change. Whether it’s the result of plant growth, or seasonal and climate shifts, change is a constant in our lives. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy to embrace. As the gentle transitions of this private garden
in Oxfordshire show, when it comes to making changes, there’s a balance to be struck between the old and the new. Experience helps, but a pinch of courage can be useful too.

When the owners of Greenlane Farm extended their house a decade ago, they asked landscape designer Tom Stuart-Smith to create a garden to suit. In the field at the front of the hilltop property he started from scratch, stripping the soil and establishing a wildflower meadow that now flourishes with over 50 native species. On the other side of the house he took a different approach, making a walled haven for ornamental planting and crops in what was once the farmhouse kitchen garden. With a nod to the farm’s past, he integrated the old apple trees that were still standing, introducing additional trees of a similar vintage to bolster the sense of continuity. Around them he created a grid of straight-edged beds. The strong shapes of the old trees and newly introduced uprights of yew ‘skittles’ and contrasting box balls provided a foil for an abundance of herbaceous planting that was well-suited to the free-draining, alkaline soil. Inevitably, over the years, this aesthetically pleasing balance began to shift.

Kew-trained Beth Marshall and David Richter were expecting their first child when they started work at Greenlane Farm. “We applied as a job share as we both wanted time with our children,” explains Beth. “We were lucky that our progressive employers were happy with the idea.” This willingness to embrace a different way of managing the garden paved the way for healthy changes and an intriguing innovation in food growing.

“Tom’s design was still strong but some plants were dominating and there were perennial weeds to deal with”

“I enjoy working with perennials,” says David, “and Beth is really interested in growing crops, so our division of labour was quite straightforward. When we arrived Tom’s design was still strong, but some plants were dominating and there were perennial weeds to deal with. It was a useful experience for us to see how quickly planting can rush ahead and over-mature.”

In some parts of the garden, the planting needed little adjustment. On the north side of the house and overlooked by the ornamental garden, Tom’s palette of different shades of green was still doing well. “Euphorbia x pasteurii ‘Phrampton Phatty’ is a plant of great stature and works perfectly here,” notes David. On the sheltered south side where the family likes to eat, roses are among the many plants clothing the house. “Rosa ‘Albertine’ is perfect in this spot as it doesn’t romp away,” David explains. “Rosa ‘Wickwar’ has single flowers and glaucous foliage. We grow it close to the door and windows because it smells wonderful, plus its hips look good against the yellow paint of the wall of the house.”

Waves of Buxus sempervirens, meanwhile, provide an evergreen backdrop for the summer container planting in the seating area. “We clip the box every two years,” says David. “To support its health, we try to keep the shapes flowing so that there are no flat areas where rain can sit.”

Elsewhere in the garden, more drastic action was needed. The Flint Borders sit to the east and west of a waist-high wall. Selinum wallichianum was dominating the east side and Geranium ‘Patricia’ the west. “I decided to take these beds in different directions,” recalls David, “aiming for a bleached-out colour scheme on the east and bold colours on the west.”

The Rear Ornamental Border is an important backdrop to the ornamental garden. The Tom Stuart-Smith plan included many grasses, most of which had disappeared by the time Beth and David started work. The bed was dominated by Anemone x hybrida ‘Königin Charlotte’ and Aconitum ‘Stainless Steel’, both of which had reverted. “It’s now a true mixed border again,” explains David. “Rosa glauca links the planting through the seasons with its brief but glorious flowering and resilient hips. Eremurus ‘Joanna’, which was part of the original design, is still growing strongly. It’s very striking from a distance and once it’s over it leaves space for the border to change character later in the summer.”

When Beth and David first began work in the garden, the importance of the apple trees to the design was immediately obvious, but a couple of years of unchecked growth meant that the shade they cast was causing problems. “The gnarled forms of the inherited apple trees play an important part in the atmosphere of the garden, but the combination of large productive trees with herbaceous beds does create maintenance issues,” says David.

The Apple Beds run from close to the house to meet the Rear Ornamental Border at a right angle. The trees here were in particular need of attention. “Some of them were originally espaliers so they have large branches at a low height. The underplanting from the original design had grown up to reach them and cut off views from the house through the beds. We pruned the trees, cleared the planting to deal with perennial weeds and then introduced low-growing woodland plants with a white-and-blue colour palette,” he continues.

“All the apples are eaten or juiced. Nothing is wasted. Our employers cherish their fruit and vegetables”

The fruit trees throughout the garden were soon back in full production. “All the apples are either eaten or juiced,” notes Beth. “Nothing is wasted. Our employers cherish their fruit and vegetables. Most of our conversations are about what they will eat.” As a result, Beth’s brief in the organic vegetable garden came with an interesting twist. “Our employers have an interest in gut health and nutrition and asked me to grow food for the family bearing these factors in mind. There wasn’t much information available but I was given freedom to research and develop my ideas,” she explains.

The no-dig vegetable garden Beth designed is based on her research. Not only are the plants nutritious, but the rows of annual vegetables, fruit, herbs and perennials arranged between willow hurdles also look beautiful. “Nutritionists suggest we eat over 30 different varieties of fruit and vegetables a week, rather than five a day” notes Beth. “I grow small quantities of a wide range of plants in succession. Picking is more like foraging and there are no gluts. It’s fun to do and it’s great for our health. A good colour range of food throughout the year is important too.”

Beth’s research encourages a big change in our approach to food growing. “Traditionally, we’ve been advised to give our plants optimum conditions, but plants that are slightly stressed produce more phytochemicals. These protect the plants and support our health too. It’s a good sign to see a few pests,” she enthuses.

At the end of 2019 and with a book, Grow Yourself Healthy, ready for publication, Beth, David and their family left Greenlane Farm to take on a garden in France. Another gardener with an excellent pedigree, Gabriella Nemeth, has taken over their role – and the old apple trees were quick to cast their spell. “When I came for my interview, it was a foggy day,” Gabriella recalls. “The moss on the branches of the old trees gave the garden a mysterious feel. I’ll observe it through the seasons and work closely with my employers. What are their needs for fresh vegetables, fruit and cut flowers? How do they use different parts of the garden? None of the planting is out of control. It will need only a light touch to keep things moving forward.”

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