Chelsea 2014 - ICanGarden.com

May 26th Visits to

Abbey House Gardens including Guided Tour - Can a garden get better in time? Yes I think it can and this years visit was amazing. These gardens are truly a must visit but with the owners separating we do wonder how long we will be able to visit this most incredible garden. The Abbey forms so much magic here pulling the gardens in and giving it that surreal feel. The topiary helps too but there is much more as you can see by the photos. The plant material just sings out to you...the placement and colours are just so gorgeous. Malmsbury Abbey is open, but only a tiny part of it is still here. Look at the photo to get an idea of what is left of it - just the part in black now. Just imagine what it must have looked like. The stained glass is stunning and the ceiling - well I liked that too. The Old Bell hotel right next door to the Abbey is the oldest hotel in England!

Westonbirt including Guided Tour - this was a delight to walk through, of course we didn't walk through the whole place but what we saw was just so pretty and peaceful....full of wildflowers carpeting the ground while many trees above were in bloom. Just imagine over 14,000 trees all labeled here...The Holfords owned this estate and you can see in one of the photos the country house...what a setting and what a place to live. The house is now a school for girls. Great shops to look at as well as great coffee.