The sunken garden, enclosed by Iroko trellis fencing and rose covered arches, was laid out in 2000.
It was planted as a box parterre as a stylized version of the White Rose of York.
Divided into four equal segments, the centre of each quadrant is formed with a clipped Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’.
A David Harber Armillary sphere is located in the centre at the lowest level, set on a circle of brick and surrounded by four standard clipped hollies.
In one corner a weeping white mulberry is trained into a dome shape and in the adjacent corner two medlars frame a bench in a sunny seating area.
Two Kiwi fruits are trained as espaliers on the walls and an old Wisteria provides a wonderful display in early summer.
A stone statue provides a focal point viewed from the house through the rose arches.
In 2015, the box hedging finally succumbed to the ravages of box blight and was replaced with Ilex crenata ‘Stokes’. Unfortunately, the Ilex did not thrive in the shallow dry soil and was removed in 2020.
The sunken garden is now in the process of being redesigned for its third and hopefully final reincarnation as a scented Mediterranean garden. We hope this will be completed in Spring 2022.
