Hever Fever

Another garden I visited over the summer that I've not yet had time to post about is Hever Castle. Most visitors come here for the magnificent castle and its excellent and educational displays about Henry VIII and the Tudors. Or else they come to lose themselves in the maze, or get squirted by jets of water in the very entertaining (yes, I've done it, and got very wet thanks to some annoying children who were so wet they decided everyone else should be too) water maze. But I like to drop in now and then to see the rose garden, dahlias and herbaceous border. There are also some gardens planted between crumbling buttresses along a wall, which I did not photograph simply because I'm not a huge fan of the formal bedding style they represent. In August the rose garden was past its best but still had some lovely offerings to view and sniff.

It's always a treat for me to see the long border of dahlias, although in August the stakes make more of a statement than the plants. I should think by now the stakes are invisible!

This dahlia caught my eye. I don't know which variety it is. I love the gradual changes in colour.

A blue section of herbaceous border.

And a hot section.

You can find out more about Hever Castle here. I'm not one for moaning on my blog, but what I will say is that whilst £14.50 for entry to the castle, mazes and garden is acceptable for a day out, £12.00 to visit the garden alone is pretty expensive - Kew Gardens charge £16 to visit one of the greatest gardens in Britain, and whilst Hever is lovely, it's not Kew. So come on Hever, encourage more garden lovers to visit and get that garden entry price down to a much more reasonable £8. You'll still make a killing in the restaurant......