Bere Mill and Hardy’s Cottage Plants

The buildings and land immediately surrounding the historic mill were purchased by MPG members Rupert and Elizabeth Nabarro in 1993. Additional farming land was later acquired with a view to achieving their renaturing and self-sufficiency ambitions. Rupert gave a comprehensive introduction and overview of the project, from which it could be seen that the garden was very much a lifetime passion. For members visiting a second time, it was impressive to see the development of the gardens, especially as the house and mill buildings had suffered a major fire in 2018 and needed comprehensive reconstruction. This was commemorated by commissioning a plaque to sit below the original date of construction.

The site consisted of a) farmland b) natural landscape and c) cultivated garden areas. Being situated on water meadows, members found it a little odd when walking, to find that, despite the recent dry weather, the ground felt spongey and soft underfoot. As well as the chalk-stream, there was an extensive mill-pond, much loved by the Nabarros’ spaniel, who was aptly named “Muddy Puddle”! To contrast with the wetlands, the grounds around the house and mill had been reinforced over the years with literally tons of hardcore, making it an ideal situation for dry-gardening. In addition to these areas there was a traditional orchard, and two arboretums, one specialising in Japanese planting.

Wild orchids, irises, and buttercups were in full-flower in the meadowland, whilst in the dry garden, plants such as euphorbias and geraniums thrived. In particular, there was an impressive collection of paeonies. The Nabarros have a passion for sculpture, and many fine pieces from both hemispheres were distributed throughout the landscape. It is not surprising that Bere Mill is the most visited garden in Hampshire under the National Garden Scheme and has been featured in a number of magazines such as Country Life.

It was difficult to drag people away from Bere Mill, but, following a hasty lunch at the nearby Watership Down Inn (whose gardens were also rather nicely planted for a local pub!), the group relocated literally up the road to Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants nursery. Winners of 24 Chelsea Gold Medals for exhibits of cottage garden perennials, Rosy and Rob Hardy also were awarded RHS Master Grower status in 2021. Nowadays, however, they have opted out of the pressures of Chelsea, and instead exhibit at smaller plant fairs, though apparently their plants are still favoured by the likes of Alan Titchmarsh for his show-gardens.

After a tour of the nurseries’ behind-the-scenes polytunnel and exterior propagation areas, the group was treated to a fascinating talk on 12 drought-tolerant plants by Rosy, who also gave valuable tips on successful growing and propagation methods. An interesting Mediterranean aspect to their business is the fact that the nursery does not use non-sustainable products such as perlite and vermiculite, but instead favours environmentally-friendly cork granules to mix in with compost or apply as a top-dressing. It also has the benefit of being anti-bacterial. If more growers adopted this methodology, it could be a life-saver for the threatened cork oaks of southern Europe.

Of course, no matter how many plants one has, there is always room for another one or two in the herbaceous border, so there could not have been a better end to the day than having the opportunity to do some necessary plant shopping in the retail area. This provided the 17 participating members with a satisfying finale to a most enjoyable day.