Vita Sackville-West's grandson is married to gardening expert and cook, Sarah Raven. They live in the family apartments at Sissinghurst and with her love of gardens, Raver spend a great deal of time in the gardens. As one might expect, she has also spent a great deal of time with Vita's writings about Sissinghurst. In a hybrid work of garden writing, Raven has taken Vita's writing and combined it with her own story of the garden.
As Raven points out, "Gardens do not normally survive their creators...." Sissinghurst is a rare example, perpetuated by surviving family, gardeners and vast, detailed writings. The gardens have retained the influence of vita Sackeville-West, while moving forward to become one of the premier gardens of the world.
This book offers up a historical look at the garden combined with the modern work being done today. The book combines old photos along side current photo, displaying the ever changing nature in the life of a garden.
Vita wrote about gardening:
The more one gardens, the more one learns; and the more one learns, the more one realizes how little one knows.Little did she realize that her vision for the garden would be taken up by her children and grand-children. The beauty of Sissinghurst, what make this garden eternal is remembering the past while learning more each day. If Vita Sackville-West were to visit Sissinghurst today, she would find it very much as she left it...and magically transformed. That is the nature of a garden.
I just read the book by her son "portrait of a marriage" which was fascinating! This sounds like an interesting follow up for me, I'm off to order it now. I've never visited but feel if I keep studying it maybe I won't need to? kidding!!
ReplyDeleteYou are such a "man about town" and the world. Add it to the bucket list!
DeleteOh, Sissinghurst's a gem. Haven't been there for far too long!
ReplyDeleteMike, pencil it in for a spring visit and send us photos!
DeleteI recently read Victoria Glendinning's biography of Vita Sackville-West. It was interesting not just for her life but because of learning more about those around her, ie Virginia Woolf. It talks quite a bit about the garden as well, but I be Raven's book is good, too. I've seen various BBC programmes about the Nicholson's - must have been an odd household in which to grow up. Then again, the world was a completely different place back then. We finally joined the National Trust this year - just being able to drop into the local historical pile for a coffee is an amazing feeling and at £11 per visit the membership fee pays for itself very quickly. We've seen some amazing places this year - I've not even yet been able to write about them all! But not yet seen Sissinghurst. Must make that a priority for next year!
ReplyDeleteShelley,
DeleteGlad you are reading us. Do add Sissinghurst to your list...and send photos! Best, Lucinda
This was/is a delight. Mummy gardened almost on this scale. She adored Vita. She was in London with the OWI during WWII ... I wonder if she knew of Sissinghurst then.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, Glendinning's book was wonderful along with Portrait of a Marriage. I think that I also read a book called: Longbarn or Long Barn in which she and her husband lived prior to moving into Sissinghurst. I can see his face - ah Harold Nicholson. Yes, I like to pretend that I lived back then, a much better time.
Yes, Long Barn is only open once or twice a year. It is a gardener's dilemma -- spending years developing a garden only to move...Vita and Harold would be glad to know Sissinghurst survives.
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