Wealden Times | WT170 | April 2016 | Garden supplement inside

HOUSE OF THE MONTH by John Graham-Hart
1.
Great outdoors
John Graham-Hart finds homes with special gardens
The border guard is approaching the car. It’s not a good moment. We’ve
all seen Midnight Express. I try not to make eye contact but now he’s
tapping on the window. “Passport.” I can smell the gun oil on his
freshly cleaned Manurhin MR-93. He glances at my picture, bends down and
stares intently into my evasive eyes. An eon passes. OK. I’m guilty. I know it.
He knows it. Let’s just get it over with.“ ’ave an ice day, M’sieur.”
And suddenly, inexplicably, wonderfully, I’m free – I and the contraband
scrabbling affectionately in my crotch. I drive on to the Shuttle and fish
surreptitiously around my boxers. Yes, all is well. I withdraw a small glass phial
and there they are, warmish but safe and sound – my 60 French baby ladybirds.
Now it may well be that under EU law French insects have the same rights as
British crawlies to reside and work in Kent and there may be no reason for the
subterfuge. By why take chances? My garden looked like a set from
Day of the Aphids.
I had received the little bêtes à bon Dieu from Vincent Delaitre, directeur
of the superb gardens of the Abbaye de Valloires, a little north of Abbeville. “I
want this to be a place where people are inspired,” he had told me as we walked
through his domain. “I want us to grow ideas.”
He had divided the grounds of the abbey into themed areas – one of which
was the English Garden and he loved it with a quiet passion. “The English tame
nature without breaking its spirit,” he told me. “The result is that they surround
their homes with truly natural beauty. They are blessed.” And so we are – and
none of us more so than the future owners of properties like these….
1. The Old Rectory
Where? The Old Rectory is in the
charming small village of Frinsted on
the North Downs, five miles from
Sittingbourne in an Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty (Google Maps ME9 0TQ).
What? The property is an attractive
unlisted Georgian house with a handsome
double-fronted façade and all the best
features of the period, including large
sash windows, high ceilings and elegant
fireplaces. On the ground floor there is a
substantial drawing room with an open
fireplace with attractive marble surround, a
double-aspect sitting room with
wood-burning stove and French windows.
There is also a dining room with marble
fireplace, kitchen/breakfast room and
large boot room. Upstairs there is a master
bedroom and large en suite bathroom
as well as a guest room with its own
bathroom, and four further bedrooms.
The substantial gardens and grounds are
divided into formal terraced lawns and
established borders. There is an array of
mature trees including a cedar, sequoia and
pine, an ornamental pond with fountain
and a kitchen garden.
How much? The Old Rectory is
priced at £1,650,000 and is with Knight
Frank in Sevenoaks. Call 01732 744477 or
visit www.knightfrank.co.uk
www.wealdentimes.co.uk
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