Viva Brighton Issue #65 July 2018

BRICKS & MORTAR
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Garden House
The right plants, in the right places
I had the pleasure of visiting the enchanting
Garden House in June, when colourful old
rambling roses are a delight to the eye and
the nose. It is sometimes open to the public,
as part of Artists Open Houses, as well as
twice a year for the National Garden Scheme.
It belongs to Bridgette Saunders, who, along
with Deborah Kalinke, runs a number of
courses. They met at Plumpton College’s
Stanmer site, where Bridgette teaches.
Bridgette and family moved into the house
near Ditchling Rise 18 years ago. “The garden
is huge, because in the 1880s it had been
a market garden,” she tells me. “We spent a
lot of time clearing at first. What you see now
isn’t ‘designed’ as such; although there are
designs in the beds. We always plant lots of
tulips. But essentially, it has evolved, because
I’m a plant collector. Most of what you see is
reclaimed and recycled. We made the pond
using old carpet from the house. We use
found objects, for example the pebble designs
in the path. The raised sections covered with
rose arches are the footings of where the
greenhouses were. It’s chalky soil but, because
it was a market garden, it’s very good and we
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