Standing in the sunshine with the wind whispering in the long grass behind and the grasshoppers chirruping wildly, I look up at the towering cedar. Long limbs spiral outwards, swaying in the stiff breeze, giant cones perched among the dark green spiny leaves.
A gentle buzz of honeybees.
Wait, no. More an intense susurration with the cutting ability of a buzz-saw.
How had I not spotted them before?
Right in front of my eyes, a mass of bees swarming, clustering protectively around their queen on a low branch.
The National Garden Scheme
NGS is a charity which opens gardens up across the country for everyone to enjoy and indirectly benefit others.
We love an NGS garden as we can indulge our passion for poking about in someone else’s borders.
Findon Place, Worthing
Findon Place, just north of Worthing in West Sussex, did not disappoint.
Privately owned, the family opens up its grounds on only a few occasions each year.
With well established borders packed with towering delphiniums, traditional roses and grand lilies, it’s a riot of colour and scent in the early summer sunshine.
High flint walls protect the neat rose garden and small orchard, while a line of lime trees sweeps up to the big cedar where we found those bees.
The lawn is sensitively cropped, leaving great swathes of long grass, home to a variety of different insect and butterfly species.
Beyond the garden there’s open grassland and small copses of trees, left to do their own thing.
The Grade II listed Georgian house sits beside the historic parish church, and even when it’s not open you can admire some of it from the nearby Monarch’s Way walking trail.
Visiting an NGS garden
There are hundreds more like Findon Place open across the country.
Ticket prices for NGS gardens are around £7 per person, although additional donations are always welcome.
Some owners provide light refreshments, and we love a coffee-and-cake treat on our visits.
Where next?
• Back to the garden
• Find your perfect NGS garden
• English gardens