Other People's Gardens: 9

Writing about other people's gardens presents a challenge which does not apply to writing about one's own. The acerbic comment has to be kept to a minimum, the hard criticism softened, the desire to tell the owners exactly how to improve their efforts diplomatically modified.One of our sagest, most direct and original of gardeners, Christopher Lloyd combines rigour, the keenest observation, an idiosyncratic sense of humour and a lifetime's knowledge and love of plants in his books, which include the bestselling The Well-Tempered Garden. In Other People's Gardens he abandons his famous garden at Great Dixter in order to explore other gardens which both interest and stimulate him, as do their owners, and his choice includes examples from all over Britain, plus a selection from Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the United States.Overwhelmingly evident from the first page is his plantmanship and this, combined with his excellent eye for detail, highlights each individual garden with great precision. The gardens chosen vary widely in location, soil and in their treatment. Although he agrees that 'a garden dies with its owner', it is possible to see in some the residual traces of previous eras, as in the layout at Kingston Maurward. Some, such as Beth Chatto's now celebrated garden, are the work of one presiding spirit and others are affectionate collaborations between friends or spouses.