Culland Hall History.

In 1995 Simon and Lucy Thompson and their family moved into Culland Hall, a house that Simon’s father, Sir Edward Thompson, built at the outbreak of the Second World War. There has been a house where Culland Hall now stands since the 12th century and there is still evidence of the past in the form of a coach house that dates from 1649, a Victorian walled garden, a folly, an ancient ha-ha and beautiful old stone walls, all of which provides a wonderful backdrop for the existing garden. Simon’s mother was a very keen gardener but, by the time Simon and Lucy moved in, her garden had essentially disappeared, so the first year of gardening involved chainsaws and JCBs. Faced with a blank canvas, Simon and Lucy were lucky enough to have advice from Mark Anthony Walker and Simon Johnson with regard to the structure of the garden.

Lucy started gardening at a very early age. Her childhood was spent in Kent close to Sissinghurst and was heavily influenced by the garden there. She made her first white garden at the age of nine and one of her first projects on arriving at Culland, was to create her second white garden, bringing some of the plants from the original garden.

The garden covers four acres overlooking parkland laid out in the late 18 th century. The garden has been divided into a series of compartments or ‘rooms’, clearly defined by hedges and walls. The decision to divide the garden into “rooms” was made for both practical as well as for aesthetic reasons, as it was necessary to protect the more tender plants in the garden from the south-westerly winds. Within yew and box compartments there is an exuberant lush mix of planting, including over 100 varieties of roses. Borders are carefully curated with regard to colour. Surrounding the formal areas of garden are the more relaxed and wilder areas, home to over 4,000 Fritillaria meleagris and a wide variety of Narcissus, as well as a woodland walk.

As with any good garden, it is dependent on the partnership of the owner and gardener and Simon and Lucy are incredibly fortunate to have a wonderful gardener, Michael Baimbridge, who has shown great dedication and skill.