Forest Lodge

About Forest Lodge

A garden for all seasons. Created on the same spit of greensand as Stourhead, we are lucky in that many rare plants and flowering trees enjoy the soil and weather. We are blessed with the ‘S”s – Sunny, South Facing and Sloping so that the garden can be viewed from above and below and the drama of the terraces can be enjoyed. Around the house there are more formal beds and a beautiful orchard leads you through to a peaceful hornbeam allee with an obelisk. The lake is surrounded with dramatic planting of gunnera and other large leaved species as well as flowering trees such as corylopsis spicata, hammamelis and cornus. In the winter there are wonderful camellias and rhododendrons and in the summer, hydrangeas of all types. Under the lake a microclimate of early flowering bulbs and bluebells emerge from a carpet of wild garlic. Even at quiet times of the year, such as August there are wonderful trees flowering such as Eucryphia and Hoheria
Do try the famous carrot cake made by Samantha Ross from Lavender Blue Bakery (also available from Fortnum & Mason!).

Good plant interest year-round due to acidic greensand soil (hamamelis, Daphne, magnolia, lovely rhododendrons, camellias and flowering trees in the spring) and south west facing slope. Beautiful in all seasons and good structure which underpins the planting.