Private garden visit LITTLE DARTMOUTH

By kind permission of Edward and Sally Benthall.

We visited this superb landscape garden overlooking Start Bay in 2012, not long after its original planting by Dan Pearson, who continues to visit and advise. Sally Benthall has a background in environmental conservation and this is evident in the use of local materials for hard landscaping and in the masterful incorporation of the garden into its surrounding landscape.

The core of the garden is a densely planted walled area, once a barn, in which several Cornus ‘Gloria Birkett’ should be flowering at the time of our visit. Also in this, the only densely planted area of the garden, are massive Euphorbia mellifera, which Sally is not afraid to prune radically when necessary, Panicum Grasses and Dieramas. Vegetables are given a prominent place, interplanted with companion plants and surrounded by Lavender. The wildflower meadow between the house and the cliffs was created early on by stripping the topsoil and oversowing with seeds of Camassia, Dog Daisies, Fritillaries, etc. The stripped soil was then re-used to create the beds in the walled garden. There is an emphasis on sustainability and diversity which can be seen in the extensive plantings of native trees and hedging, companion planting in the vegetable garden, rainwater harvesting and composting. The decorative element is always present, both in the planting and the sinuously curving walls and paths, but it has been blended seamlessly into its environment.

We will assemble in the Stone Barn for cold drinks and an introductory talk by Sally, following which we will be taken round the wider areas of the garden, down mown paths edged with wildflowers, by Sally and her Head Gardener. Tea and cake will be back in the barn at 4.30pm after which people are free to explore the garden until 5.30pm.

Directions                  

Proceed to the National Trust’s Little Dartmouth car park, off the A379 Dartmouth/Stoke Fleming road and follow PH signs.