Opening Easter weekend, the latest project from the famous English designer and Mulberry founder Roger Saul is a stunning new garden nursery at his Kilver Court Designer Village in Somerset. The nursery will be officially opened by Viscountess Weymouth who will also be formally welcoming four flamingos to Kilver Court, resurrecting the traditions of the gardens which were home to the exotic birds more than 50 years ago.
In the new garden nursery, Roger aims to provide a total experience for garden lovers. There will be an unusual selection of the very best herbaceous, alpine and subtropical plants for sale which Roger has fou nd by scouring the country and selecting from specialist plant suppliers and growers. Many of these plants will also be featured in the garden’s newly restored borders and visitors can be inspired by plant combinations, colours and settings.
Customers will also be able to browse the nursery shop known as the ‘Wiggly Shed’ due to its reclaimed corrugated tin roof, mismatched windows and wood clad walls. The shop will stock the eccentric and excellent in garden tools, collectables, outdoor furniture and garden accessories, all personally selected by Roger and his wife Monty. Shoppers will be able to purchase gardening tools from the sought-after range by Sarah Raven and stunning garden gifts from British designer brand Sophie Conran. Also stocked will be Franchi Seeds, the oldest family run seed company in the world, which offers a huge selection of locally produced varieties as well a stunning heritage selection created especially for Kilver Court. For the serious plantsman, the garden nursery will house best in class tools and equipment from Burgon and Ball as well as more intriguing items from Implementations, including its heart-shaped copper trowels.
Commenting, Roger Saul said, “Following the devastation caused by Storm Frank at the end of December, what was an exciting new garden nursery project, became a major restoration job. We quickly realised that in some areas we would just have to start again. This has given us the chance to bring in some fresh ideas, look out for Pink Flamingo Island, the Stumpery and a newly opened up rockery. The welcoming of four flamingos to our gardens by Viscountess Weymouth, which we have named George, Ken, Olive and Ivy after my and Monty’s grandparents, reintroduces flamingos to the gardens after more than 50 years.
This all marks a very exciting time for Kilver Court where, for the first time, we bridge the gap between our gardens and designer village with our new garden nursery. Just as in the early days of Mulberry I was inspired by the vibrancy of the London fashion scene in the 1970’s, today really is the moment for creative gardening with colour, shape and design very much on the move, in my thinking away from the prairie look of the last few years. I always feel a garden should be a constant surprise with a number of different ‘rooms’ and vistas, which Kilver Court has in abundance. I am really looking forward to welcoming our visitors and hope they enjoy the experience as much as I and the team have enjoyed creating them.”
2016 will be a very exciting and busy time in the garden as Roger continues to work with his gardeners to re-plant the gardens’ herbaceous borders with fresh colour schemes and the rockery, long in need of an overhaul, is also being edited. This year, Roger and his team of gardeners intend to enhance the natural vista of Kilver Court’s gardens with a wild meadow border that naturally draws the eye away from the garden towards the historic viaduct and open countryside behind. By introducing a warmer palette of pinks, mauves and blues, Roger hopes to re-create the natural pastel hues found in summer hedgerows.