Adam Nicolson: The secret history of Sissinghurst - Episode 272
4/30/202629 min
Sissinghurst is one of the country’s crowning gems of National Trust gardens, and a place in which Adam was brought up, around the beauty curated by his grandparents.
This week on ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’, we’re delving into the centuries of legacy which led to a spot perfect for Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson to create the poetic space we know and adore today, and how their vision is being revived today for generations to come.
In this episode, discover:
- The remarkable story of how Vita Sackville-West turned a ruined Elizabethan courtyard house into one of the world’s most celebrated gardens
- How Sissinghurst evolved through centuries – from Renaissance palace to poetic family home and garden, and all in between
- The creative partnership between Vita and Harold Nicolson
- What makes the white garden so magical, from its glowing night-time palette to its scented, moth-pollinated plants
- How the newly reimagined Delos garden brings a Greek hillside to Kent, blending historical inspiration with modern design
Products mentioned:
Ammi majus:
sarahraven.com/products/ammi-majus
Ammi visnaga:
sarahraven.com/products/ammi-visnaga
Agrostemma githago 'Milas Snow Queen':
sarahraven.com/products/agrostemma-githago-milas-snow-queen
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: info@sarahraven.com
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSarah Raven· Host0:00
This podcast is brought to you by sarahraven.com, which is home to everything you need for a truly beautiful and productive garden. You'll also find great and essential gardening kit, and stylish lovely things to have in your house to bring the outside indoors, all inspired by the garden and the house being tied together. There's also plenty of garden inspiration, how-to videos, and specialist growing guides. So head over to sarahraven.com today to discover even more. [upbeat music] Welcome to Grow Cook Eat Range, the podcast of me, Sarah Raven, and today I'm joined by my husband, Adam Nicolson. Hello, Adam.
Adam Nicolson· Guest0:48
Hello, Sarah.
Sarah Raven· Host0:49
The reason that I've asked Adam to join us all is we were plotting and planning the podcast for the first six months of the year, thinking about what themes we would like to cover and what guests we would like to ask to be on it. And, um, Josie Lewis, our head gardener, quite rightly pointed out that in our program we didn't have any with Adam. And Adam is actually very popular with you as listeners, [laughs] so we wanted to add him in. And I suddenly realized I'd never asked Adam, and we have never covered Sissinghurst on the podcast, which is a kind of strange omission in a way. It's a place that Adam was brought up in,