As a teenager I had little interest in gardening and certainly did not sufficiently appreciate the lovely garden at our family home. I would be delighted to have that garden now with its numerous fruit trees and beautiful flowers. It is not, however, that garden that I would really like to transplant to my current home but rather one that I discovered in France.

The French Exchange

When I was 14 my school organised an exchange with a school in the Loire Valley. I was paired with a girl who lived in a small village at some distance from the school. When I arrived for my first visit I discovered that her parents owned a small hotel where the family lived. I had a great time staying there but things got even better when I was taken to stay at the Grandparent’s home a few miles down the road.

The grandparents were wealthy people and lived in a gorgeous house with a copious amount of land, most of which was wooded. Behind the house there was a more formal garden and I will never forget the first time that I wandered out of the back door. There was a gravelled courtyard and then a hedged croquet lawn. Who has a croquet lawn? I was later to run into trouble when I played football on it with my friend’s cousins!

An Amazing Garden

That first day I decided to explore beyond the lawn and was astonished to find that the sloping garden had been landscaped to feature an upper and lower pond with a small waterfall between them. In truth the pond was so large that it could more accurately be described as a lake! I could see that there was a small boathouse at the end of the lower pond and thought that it would be a great place to relax and read. I walked down there with my book whilst admiring the amazing planting around the pond.

A Terrifying Scream

I took a seat in the ornamental boathouse and couldn’t believe how serene the garden was. The pretty flowers and relaxing sound of the running water was so gorgeous! I sat down in the boathouse and became absorbed in my book until a terrible screeching sound nearly made me jump out of my skin. I was a bit terrified in truth as I couldn’t imagine what the hell was going on. Then I looked up to see a peacock above my head which again started to scream. Perhaps I had invaded his territory!

I spent many wonderful hours in that garden and eventually made my peace with the peacock. Since that day I have always thought that If I had a large enough space I would recreate that garden so that I could enjoy it every day. There is certainly something quite beautiful about water features in gardens. They bring a serenity which cannot be achieved by other means. Of course I wouldn’t have the skills to create such a landscape and would have to call in water garden experts to build it for me but If I had the land and the finances I would do it immediately.

There is a water gardening centre not too far from where I currently live. Romsey World of Water is certainly where I would go to commission my dream garden. When I walk around their displays I am always reminded of my favourite garden in France and I hope that one day I will be walking in to Romsey World of Water to place my order!