Sissinghurst in its surroundings

Sissinghurst in Its Surroundings

Considering the interplay between a garden and its surroundings is a key part of designing and planting a garden. In this lesson we'll head out onto the estate to look at how the wider landscape influences the garden at Sissinghurst and how to make the most of any borrowed views you may have in your own space.

Management of the Wider Estate at Sissinghurst

The garden is at the heart of a 470-acre estate of pasture, woodland, and farmland that became more intensive after Vita's time, and we've restored it into a mosaic of habitats. Vita's creation of the garden was inspired by the progressively managed, biodiverse farmland. We've created wildflower meadows, planted hedges, and allowed the stream to flood to create marshy habitats. It's a rich landscape full of wildlife again, which was key to restoring the garden's authenticity.

The Estate as a Borrowed Landscape

Nature and wildlife sweep up to the garden walls, creating a dialogue between the garden and the surrounding landscape. We try to maximise the sense of place, with openings revealing views out to the estate and peninsulas of wildflowers from the meadows stretching to the garden gate.

Applying These Principles in Your Garden

Pay close attention to the location where you are – the environment beyond your garden will be different from here, but understanding your local wildflowers will give you clues to how to manage your garden and what plants might thrive for you, such as cultivated versions of plants that grow in local ditches and verges. Tune into those and bring that inspiration back into your garden.

Creating Shelter and Retaining Views

• Hedges create shelter, intimacy and enclosure, but there's always a balance with views.
• Most gardens have some sort of borrowed view – a church in the distance, a tree in the neighbour's garden.
• The idea of shakkei, or borrowed landscape, is to look beyond the garden and bring those features within the garden itself.
• Is there a landmark or beautiful tree that you can frame? Can you cut out a sliver from a hedge to give a fleeting view of something unexpected?
• The first thing I do at a new garden is to go to the boundary to look at the views.
• Spending time in the local landscape will help you deeply understand it – not only the plants and wildlife, but also things like where the light falls and where the frost pockets are.
• These are all clues you can take back into the garden to improve your gardening.

Plant Directory

Castanea sativa

Sweet chestnut

Hardy deciduous tree

Fagaceae

Quercus robur

Common oak, English oak

Hardy deciduous tree

Fagaceae

Glossary

Shakkei

Also known as 'borrowed scenery', a Japanese garden design principle in which distant elements like mountains, trees, or buildings are incorporated into the garden's design, effectively expanding its perceived boundaries and blurring the line between the garden space and the surrounding landscape.