Broughton Grange & Daylesford House
Today we are visiting two Oxfordshire gardens that are the passion projects of their owners.
Broughton Grange, Banbury
We will start at Broughton Grange, the former home of Lady Ottoline Morrell, society hostess and associate of the Bloomsbury Group, whose life is explored in the Garden Museum’s upcoming exhibition Gardening Bohemia: Bloomsbury Women Outdoors. Under the current owner’s stewardship over the last 25 years, the garden at Broughton Grange is now recognised as one of the most significant, private contemporary gardens in Britain, and we are honoured to have head gardener Andrew Woodall as our guide.
In 2001, Tom Stuart-Smith was commissioned to transform a six-acre south-facing field into a walled garden, featuring three individually themed terraces. This was designed to respond to the surrounding landscape and is now considered a classic of its type. The rest of the garden is being continually developed, with features including a woodland garden, a stumpery, parterre and rose garden, fountain garden, water meadow, and spring walk. Since 2003, a substantial arboretum has been planted over an area of approximately 80 acres with a wide range of interesting species and cultivars.
There will be time afterward to wander the gardens and enjoy tea or coffee and refreshments.
We will then travel to the idyllic Daylesford Farm Shop for lunch in The Glasshouse before heading across the road to Daylesford House.
Daylesford House, Daylesford
In the afternoon, we are fortunate to be able to visit the private garden of Lord and Lady Bamford at Daylesford House, set within a late 18th century park of 120 acres. The garden of ten hectares features lakeside and woodland walks within natural wildflower meadows, a large, formal walled kitchen garden with an orchid and peach house, topiary elephants and a trellised rose garden. A collection of citrus within a period orangery, a secret garden, a pavilion and formal pools can also be seen. We will enjoy a tour of the garden with renowned garden designer, Rupert Golby.
Following our visit we will return to the Daylesford Farm Shop for afternoon tea and plan to arrive back at nearby Kingham station for 5:45pm (TBC).
Please note this is a large garden with substantial distances and no photography is allowed.
