Country Homes & Interiors – September 2019

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AT HOME WITH...

OwnersTrishandJeremy

Gibsonliveherewiththeirrescue

EnglishPointer,Archie.

HouseGeorgianandVictorian

vicaragewithGeorgian

outbuildings.

FeaturesOneanda halfacres of

neutral clay.

T

heirfirstglimpseoftheOldVicarageintheSomerset

villageofWeareremindedTrishandJeremyGibsonof

ascenefromtheHammerHouseofHorror.‘Itlooked

verygrim,’laughsTrish,‘withmassesofdenseshrubs

rightupagainstthehouseanda lotofblanklawn,aswellasa

tenniscourtsurroundedbya hideouschain-linkfence.’Inspiteof

that,thecouple‘feltanimmediatepull’andrelocatedherefrom

northCornwallin2013,tobeneartheirfamilyinBristol.

TheovergrownVictorianshrubberies,thick,darkhedgesand

toweringWellingtoniamighthaveputoffsomebuyers,butTrish

andJeremyhaverenovateda seriesofhousesandgardensin

London,Bristol,CornwallandFranceovertheyears.Theylove

nothingmorethangettingtheirteethstuckintoa newprojectand

couldseethepotentialofthisneglectedgardenontheedgeof

theMendips,withitsviewsofthevillagechurchandsurrounding

hills.Trishis theplantswomanandgardenhistorian– shehasan

MAinGardenHistoryandwrotea bookonthelandscapearchitect

BrendaColvin.Jeremydescribeshimselfas‘thegrunt’– thedigger,

thebuilder,thehedgecutter.Together,theymakea greatteam.

Restoringthehousetooklongerthanthecoupleexpected,but

whentheyeventuallybeganworkonthegarden,oneofthefirst

thingstheydidwasremovetheshrubsthatobscuredviewsofthe

plotoutofthefrontwindows,replantingtheborderwithlow

herbaceousperennials.‘Theblanklawndidtheappearanceofthe

housenofavourseither,soweaddedboxspheresalongtheedge

ofthedriveandplanteda tieredCornuscontroversaforautumn

colour,’saysTrish.Thedogwoodnowstandsina bedplantedwith

acombinationofcerise,silverandwhiteincludingherbaceous

perennials such as magentaKnautia macedonica and pink

Fringingthegravelpathis a

prettyborderofPennisetum

macrourum, bronzefennel,

wild carrot and cosmos

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118 COUNTRY HOMES & INTERIORS