0:00:02 > 0:00:03Behind Northern Ireland's streets
0:00:03 > 0:00:07and fences lie some amazing hidden gardens, private spaces with
0:00:07 > 0:00:10passionate owners, open just a few days a year.
0:00:11 > 0:00:14Now, two top gardening experts, Diarmuid Gavin
0:00:14 > 0:00:18and Helen Dillon are going to be searching for the best.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22- They'll be looking for great design...- Look at that.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24That sort of garden doesn't fit in with that.
0:00:24 > 0:00:25..beautiful planting...
0:00:25 > 0:00:27Alpine heaven, clematis heaven.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30Guaranteed to make gardeners go weak at the knees.
0:00:30 > 0:00:32..and great gardening practice...
0:00:32 > 0:00:35It's like putting lipstick on a gorilla. It's still a gorilla.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38- Do you know what I want to do here? - What? Lie down on the grass!
0:00:38 > 0:00:42..all while the nervous owners wait inside for the verdict.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44I can't believe that they're here.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47It's like somebody coming in to criticise your children.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50This week, three gardens from County Down,
0:00:50 > 0:00:52but what will Diarmuid and Helen make of them?
0:00:55 > 0:00:59The first garden sits on its own peninsula on Strangford Lough
0:00:59 > 0:01:00in County Down.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03Tracy Hamilton inherited the Georgian estate from
0:01:03 > 0:01:07her grandparents, Jack and Kay Mackay, almost 30 years ago
0:01:07 > 0:01:11and is aware of the great responsibility that comes with it.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15It's a big property, a lot of management, but we respect it
0:01:15 > 0:01:17and I just think we are very privileged to have it and,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20you know, we put our all and our energy into it
0:01:20 > 0:01:23and the more you put into something, the more you get out.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25It's an astonishingly-demanding collection,
0:01:25 > 0:01:29centred on a walled garden and surrounded by an arboretum
0:01:29 > 0:01:32that contains some of the most impressive trees in Ireland.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39It's a huge challenge for a busy business executive like Tracy.
0:01:39 > 0:01:40There are days I think, "Oh, my goodness,
0:01:40 > 0:01:44"does anyone realise what this place is involving?"
0:01:44 > 0:01:47Tracy's solution is to keep meticulous notes
0:01:47 > 0:01:48of what plant is where.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52We are fortunate in that my grandparents kept all their
0:01:52 > 0:01:57archives, we've got all the receipts and invoices of purchases.
0:01:57 > 0:01:58We have documentation.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01My grandmother was a great one for writing everything in little books.
0:02:01 > 0:02:06And where she's planted things, what have died, the reasons...
0:02:06 > 0:02:08So I think... just sheer recording and labelling.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12So, how does Tracy feel about Diarmuid and Helen's visit?
0:02:12 > 0:02:15When I heard that Diarmuid and Helen were coming, I thought,
0:02:15 > 0:02:19"Oh, my goodness. The gurus of the Irish gardening world!"
0:02:19 > 0:02:21But I appreciate what they'll say,
0:02:21 > 0:02:23because it will be interesting to see.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Diarmuid Gavin is one of the UK and Ireland's top garden designers
0:02:27 > 0:02:29and has won gold at Chelsea.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Top gardening author Helen Dillon owns Ireland's
0:02:32 > 0:02:34best-known private garden.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38Together, they will argue over the garden, while Tracy waits inside.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Oh, well, this is a bit different. Gorgeous.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46Georgian house peeping up over the lawn in the distance.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49Right, you go that way. You'll be invited up for tea.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51I'm the gardener. I'll go through the back door.
0:02:51 > 0:02:52I have to go with my friend.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55ORGAN MUSIC PLAYS
0:02:55 > 0:02:59The centrepiece of the property is a group of giant yews
0:02:59 > 0:03:01that overlook a walled garden.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04To me, this is a cathedral.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06It's absolutely wonderful.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08I have to say, the sunlight does it a huge amount of favours.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11The sunlight puts in the magic and it's coming through
0:03:11 > 0:03:14stained-glass windows and it's absolutely beautiful.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18- Do you remember that, the wedding of William and Kate...?- Yeah.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22..in Westminster Abbey and the trees? That's what...
0:03:22 > 0:03:26And they soared up like that, look, these are soaring like some great...
0:03:26 > 0:03:28- Only one thing missing.- A Princess.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30No, Pippa Middleton's bum.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34I knew you were going to start that. I knew you would get it in somehow.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39The walled garden protects the plants from the winds
0:03:39 > 0:03:42blowing in from the lough and keeps intruders out.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47- Well, most of them.- Do you know what I want to do here?- What?
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Lie down on the grass and roll in the daisies.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53I mean, it's a lawn built for that in this sun.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59Around every corner is a new delight.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01I absolutely adore that plant
0:04:01 > 0:04:04when it's looking as good as that against the blue sky.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06Crinodendron, the lantern tree.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09I mean, you see it... It does so well in Northern Ireland
0:04:09 > 0:04:13and I think it's the fact that it's a bit warmer than Scotland
0:04:13 > 0:04:16and it's acid soil and this is near the sea
0:04:16 > 0:04:19and you've got that, sort of, microclimate of being near the sea
0:04:19 > 0:04:22and it's a blissfully-happy plant. It's dead easy.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25And the way it drapes, it links into this rose.
0:04:25 > 0:04:26I think this is moyesii,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29but I wouldn't put my head in a block over it.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31I think you're right. And the way that that's
0:04:31 > 0:04:32been allowed to arch down so low.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36And that's been... To climb up into the Crinodendron, it's just heaven.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40And that's what I think a relaxed Irish garden is all about.
0:04:40 > 0:04:46Look at this and alcove carved from inside a yew and a lover's bench.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48Absolutely. First catch your lover.
0:04:48 > 0:04:53I must show people this. You hardly ever see this as good as this.
0:04:53 > 0:04:58This is the Scottish flame flower, but it actually comes from Chile
0:04:58 > 0:05:00and the reason it was called the Scottish flame flower is
0:05:00 > 0:05:03that it did so well in Scotland. It goes completely rampant
0:05:03 > 0:05:08and looks absolutely gorgeous, like it does now, or it won't grow at all.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10- You've got two choices. - What would be your top tip,
0:05:10 > 0:05:12cos people find it hard to establish?
0:05:12 > 0:05:14It wants its roots in the shade, like this,
0:05:14 > 0:05:16and its head in the sun, like that. So this is the perfect place.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19It says, "Thank you very much. I'm very happy here."
0:05:25 > 0:05:28Clouds of geranium, which is most useful plant in a garden
0:05:28 > 0:05:31- because it'll establish in a dry...- Sun or shade.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33..dappled, shady place. Here, it looks gorgeous.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35Don't need to stake it. There's a lovely blue one.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39- That is beautiful. Melianthus! - My favourite plant.- Is it?
0:05:39 > 0:05:42- My favourite plant.- Why? - It's just the most heavenly shape.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44A kind of serrated, jagged edge. And the yew.
0:05:44 > 0:05:45Now, this should happen a lot more.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49And we wonder what's inside that yew. Looks like it's got a hole in it.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Wow! A doorway!
0:05:52 > 0:05:55This.. This is magical.
0:05:55 > 0:05:56HE GASPS
0:05:56 > 0:05:59Look at this!
0:05:59 > 0:06:01Wow, look at that sea.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04And a beautiful, cool sea breeze.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07Just the most magical garden to be drawn into explore.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09Love it, love it.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15You know, it takes a lot of confidence to create
0:06:15 > 0:06:18or to look after a garden this way.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21And not to say, "There's all those new plants and I've got to have them
0:06:21 > 0:06:22"and I'll take out the old."
0:06:22 > 0:06:25Let's just live with these lovely things we have.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27So, this isn't a collectors garden?
0:06:27 > 0:06:29No, this is NOT the collectors garden.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33This is the contented garden. It's the happy garden.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36Nothing has been shifted out to make way for the new.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39And it was a collector's garden in Victorian times.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42That was what people did. They did collecting.
0:06:42 > 0:06:44But it's been allowed to relax.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48There's a certain mellowness to it which is absolutely most endearing.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00So, of course, the big question now is, who lives in a house
0:07:00 > 0:07:03and with a garden like this? I have some ideas on that.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07I think it might be a, kind of, minor member of European royalty,
0:07:07 > 0:07:12say a Swedish princess, who wanted to get away from her place
0:07:12 > 0:07:14and be in the land of green.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17It could be, I think, it actually is, Elton and David.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19They've grown up. They've had kids,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22they've given up the bling and they want elegance.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25It's not big enough for the whole caboodle. It's not big enough.
0:07:25 > 0:07:29Time at last to meet Tracey, the proud owner.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33- Welcome to Ringdufferin. - Lovely to see you.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35Hi, Helen, welcome to Ringdufferin.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38- It's a great treat. - It really is, isn't it?
0:07:38 > 0:07:43Very few people would approach the idea of a house or garden
0:07:43 > 0:07:47with that notion of taking it on. What does that mean to you?
0:07:47 > 0:07:51A lot of energy. A lot of work. It is a serious commitment.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55And when you say taking it on, what are you taking it one for?
0:07:55 > 0:07:59I think because of my own passion.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03I adore Strangford Lough, I adore the location.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05We are very fortunate to be living here.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08Are you looking after the house and the garden for future generations?
0:08:08 > 0:08:12Yes, for everybody, cos the nice thing about Ringdufferin
0:08:12 > 0:08:14is we have so many specialist groups that come here
0:08:14 > 0:08:18and to see people's reaction, seeing a property like this,
0:08:18 > 0:08:22in family ownership, it just brings out the magic.
0:08:22 > 0:08:24We are very fortunate in Ireland
0:08:24 > 0:08:26to have wonderful, wonderful properties, but not all
0:08:26 > 0:08:27are lived in by the family.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31And I think that that's what people really, really enjoy when they come.
0:08:31 > 0:08:35For me, the treat of the week or the treat of the whole series
0:08:35 > 0:08:39- has to be the yews in the middle of the walled garden.- I know.
0:08:39 > 0:08:43It was just absolutely magical. What year was that lot put in?
0:08:43 > 0:08:46We reckon 1820, because the Florencecourt yew
0:08:46 > 0:08:48was discovered in 1780
0:08:48 > 0:08:52and they weren't commercially available, as far as I'm aware,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54until 1820 and they have to be one of the first ones planted.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57You think you should be doing something else?
0:08:57 > 0:08:59Do you think you should be as adventurous
0:08:59 > 0:09:02as whoever created this garden was?
0:09:02 > 0:09:05Do you think you should make not a place of rest, but a statement?
0:09:07 > 0:09:10Um, I hear what you're saying, I know I should be. It's just,
0:09:10 > 0:09:14we don't... Yes, it's a very big garden, but something would have
0:09:14 > 0:09:19to come out to make a statement, I think, which would be a tricky one.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21You don't have the confidence in your own ability, do you?
0:09:21 > 0:09:23It's not really confidence.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25I don't want to take away something that works.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29It all works. But this garden has always been added to and I'm not
0:09:29 > 0:09:33talking about added to gently. There's a statement to be made here.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36There's a statement to be made about you and YOUR family living here.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Do you think I should have a water feature
0:09:39 > 0:09:41- of the walled garden? - She says that witheringly!
0:09:41 > 0:09:44- She did rather. She did rather. - I'd love a little garden room,
0:09:44 > 0:09:47which would be my garden office, with all my planting records
0:09:47 > 0:09:50and all my books, and I'd be right in the midst of the garden.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52- With a vista?- Yes.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56I think this is a most charming garden,
0:09:56 > 0:10:01but I do think it needs the imprint of its curator
0:10:01 > 0:10:05and I would like to see something that reflects your personality.
0:10:05 > 0:10:10Not something gentle. Something that makes a...statement.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12- Shh!- Does that mean that we have the pleasure
0:10:12 > 0:10:14of you coming back to see what I've done?
0:10:14 > 0:10:16- THEY LAUGH - I'd be delighted to.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23The next garden is in Bessbrook, just outside Newry, in County Down
0:10:23 > 0:10:27and it's the proud achievement of William and Hillary McKelvie.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30In a limited space, they've created a garden
0:10:30 > 0:10:33which is small, but perfectly formed.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35We decided if it was divided up a bit,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38you could fool yourself into thinking
0:10:38 > 0:10:40you had more done than you had.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43So, you had the top bit done and, then, you had the middle bit done
0:10:43 > 0:10:45and then the bottom bit done.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48Avid plant collectors Bill and Hillary
0:10:48 > 0:10:50have an impressive range of plants,
0:10:50 > 0:10:53but one type stands out.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Yes, we love our alpines.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57- Slightly(!) - THEY LAUGH
0:10:57 > 0:10:59Yes!
0:11:00 > 0:11:03Yes, their garden is packed with small alpine rock plants
0:11:03 > 0:11:06with many showcased in a crevice garden,
0:11:06 > 0:11:09inspired by a trip to the Czech Republic.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12They do their rock gardens completely different to us.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16So, we came back and we did a small trial one to see how it would go
0:11:16 > 0:11:20and three years ago, we decided to do the big rock bed.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24So, how do William and Hillary feel about Helen and Diarmuid's visit?
0:11:24 > 0:11:28It's like somebody coming in to criticise your children!
0:11:28 > 0:11:31Because the garden really can get an obsession with you.
0:11:31 > 0:11:35So, the fact that somebody might criticise it is terrible.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Well, it's not Downton Abbey.
0:11:39 > 0:11:43No, but it could have some Downton Abbey plants in it.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45My goodness.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47Hanging baskets and troughs greet you
0:11:47 > 0:11:51at the entrance to the first of William and Hillary's garden areas.
0:11:51 > 0:11:53Lovely sunny place.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56- Look at this lot here. - Ah, a bit of colour, by the house.
0:11:56 > 0:12:01I mean, Diarmuid, look at this adorable little hanging bell.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04- It is very sweet. - It's a sweetie pie.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08And really nice sweet peas growing up around it.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11I know, and delicate sweet hearts that you don't see anywhere else.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15And people don't grow enough clematis in pots.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18Exactly. Then you can really look after it, you can really feed it
0:12:18 > 0:12:21and stop it drying out, which immediately gives it wilt.
0:12:21 > 0:12:26It's not long before Diarmuid and Helen spot their first alpine plant.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28- It's alpine heaven. - I think it's got a bit of height.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30A lot of alpine gardens are very flat.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34- I think it's excitingly done, that.- Yeah.
0:12:35 > 0:12:36Clematis everywhere.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38Alpine heaven, clematis heaven.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42- Beautiful planted troughs.- Nice pots.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47An archway of roses leads to another garden room.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49Oh, it's a garden of compartments.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52It's quite dated. It centres around plants.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Whatever makes the plants happy is...
0:12:54 > 0:12:57- Is primary, exactly.- ..is primary.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00And then, yes, you have this glorious archway,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03so you're seduced into a completely different type.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06When I look up there, I see a cottage garden, I suppose.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14Well, it's opening out to more alpines!
0:13:14 > 0:13:16HE CHUCKLES
0:13:16 > 0:13:18Thou shalt not scoff at alpines!
0:13:20 > 0:13:22I have to say, for me, it's just too much.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24I understand, from the gardener's point of view,
0:13:24 > 0:13:27this is what they collect, this is what they absolutely love,
0:13:27 > 0:13:31but the way it's set out is very 1960s, 1970s.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34You see what I think, that's the scale.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37That whole thing is the scale of a lovely cottage garden.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40Romantic and fally-abouty and centred and flowery and lovely
0:13:40 > 0:13:43and then, we get here and it all gets dwarfy
0:13:43 > 0:13:46and I think this is fine if you want to grow specialised plants
0:13:46 > 0:13:49and they're brilliantly grown and they're very, very happy plants.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51If this could be on its own somewhere else,
0:13:51 > 0:13:55- rather that on top of that romantic jumble...- I think you're right.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57You're right, but that's from a design point of view.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00They just love alpines. What can they do?
0:14:00 > 0:14:03Nobody is to be contemptuous about alpines round here!
0:14:04 > 0:14:07Among the impressive array of plants on show,
0:14:07 > 0:14:09one has caught Helen's attention.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11Are you not enchanted by that colour?
0:14:11 > 0:14:14- What a colour!- That is absolutely gorgeous.- I mean, these corydalis -
0:14:14 > 0:14:17I think they call it "cor-id-alis" instead of "cory-dalis" -
0:14:17 > 0:14:19they particularly love Northern Ireland.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21I think it's the moisture and the cool.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23It's that exquisite blue,
0:14:23 > 0:14:26which is guaranteed to make gardeners go weak at the knees.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32The end of the garden has a lawn and a seating area
0:14:32 > 0:14:34and not an alpine in sight.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37And finally, pure serenity.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43Seats one, two, three, four, five, six.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45Not much room, really.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47People are being squeezed out of this garden.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50- It's not a garden, I think.- Well, actually, sorry to be so negative,
0:14:50 > 0:14:52but a classic mistake people make
0:14:52 > 0:14:54is they don't make the seating area big enough.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Because they say, "That'll be just fine for two people",
0:14:58 > 0:15:00but when they've got six friends, it doesn't work.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03It's not... It's a garden for working in.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06It's not for sitting in, because they want every inch of space,
0:15:06 > 0:15:09as I do, to plant a plant, rather than plant a chair.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11But, overall, a beautiful space.
0:15:11 > 0:15:12Overall, a lovely, plain space
0:15:12 > 0:15:15and a place to wriggle one's toes in the dew in the morning,
0:15:15 > 0:15:16which is what one needs.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22So, who lives in a garden like this?
0:15:22 > 0:15:26Somebody who absolutely adores plants and has adored them
0:15:26 > 0:15:29for a very long time and, um, I have it a bit myself,
0:15:29 > 0:15:31it's a kind of alcoholism, but it's over plants.
0:15:31 > 0:15:33You see one and you have to have it.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35But I don't think that's really fair,
0:15:35 > 0:15:38because these are very, very knowledgeable people.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40They are really knowledgeable, they really love their plants
0:15:40 > 0:15:43and they've done a wonderful job. Except, my only criticism -
0:15:43 > 0:15:46to me, it feels a little bit squashed.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50Time to meet the nervous owners.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52Sorry to be treading on your territory.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56- Not at all, you're more than welcome.- It's a dreamy garden.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59How do you feel it works, from a design point of view?
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Usually, whenever people come, they'll come round,
0:16:02 > 0:16:05which is the back of our house and they take a look at it,
0:16:05 > 0:16:07and they say, "Well, it's not going to take long to visit here."
0:16:07 > 0:16:11And then they'll come round and you usually get an "Oh",
0:16:11 > 0:16:15whenever you come through the side and they see the whole patio area
0:16:15 > 0:16:18and then you'll get, "Oh, my goodness, there's more."
0:16:18 > 0:16:21- But your passion is obviously alpines.- Yes.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23- Where does that come from? - They're so beautiful.
0:16:23 > 0:16:28The very first alpine show that we went to, in Greenmount, Glasnevin,
0:16:28 > 0:16:31had a trough planted up.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33And I just looked at it and I said to him,
0:16:33 > 0:16:37"I really, really want to do that." Oh, it's just fabulous.
0:16:37 > 0:16:38Would you say, in a way,
0:16:38 > 0:16:41that your great love of alpines has sort of taken over here?
0:16:41 > 0:16:44Can I burst in here? Do you know what she called you earlier on?
0:16:44 > 0:16:45- What?- Alcoholics.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47THEY LAUGH
0:16:47 > 0:16:50Well, we consider ourselves plantaholics, more than alcoholics.
0:16:50 > 0:16:51Exactly.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53There is another story here, too.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57When I examined this garden and I meet you.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59- It's about a partnership, isn't it?- Oh, yes.- It is.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01You know, and that love
0:17:01 > 0:17:04and passion for the garden, also, is about you two.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07It'd be very hard to do it just all on your own.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10You need... you definitely need back-up.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12And is that the perfect partnership there?
0:17:12 > 0:17:15- Oh, I think so.- I think so.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17I agree. THEY LAUGH
0:17:17 > 0:17:21Well, of course, we think, as everybody would think,
0:17:21 > 0:17:23your garden is absolutely charming.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25- Thank you.- Thank you very much.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30Our final garden is in the shadow of the Mourne mountains
0:17:30 > 0:17:32in Castlewellan.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Sam Harrison bought this two-acre site in the '70s
0:17:35 > 0:17:39and set about creating a meandering parkland, full of surprises.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43It has been like a good book.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46There's always a beginning, a middle and an end.
0:17:46 > 0:17:47I haven't got to the end yet.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51As a forester in nearby Castlewellan Forest Park,
0:17:51 > 0:17:55Sam knew how to make his vision a reality.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58I had the skills to grow my own seeds,
0:17:58 > 0:18:03so it was such a joy to do from a blank canvas.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06Humour is an important element in Sam's garden.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09If I hadn't have been a forester, I wanted to be a cartoonist and
0:18:09 > 0:18:14I would like to think that parts of that are on show around the garden.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18So, how does Sam feel about a visit from Diarmuid and Helen?
0:18:18 > 0:18:22If the truth be told, I can't believe that they're here,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25because, to me, my garden's only a wee, small garden
0:18:25 > 0:18:30and for people like that come into my garden to say nice things,
0:18:30 > 0:18:34or bad things, I don't care... I'll defend my garden,
0:18:34 > 0:18:36but at the same time, it's just unusual.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39What do you think of this, Diarmuid?
0:18:39 > 0:18:43Well, it's a Paris, isn't it? It's a pear, a domed pear.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45What do I think that? Not a lot.
0:18:45 > 0:18:49It's quite pretty today, but if you let it go, it just goes everywhere.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51It has got no manners.
0:18:51 > 0:18:53The problem with it, it's a beautiful leaf,
0:18:53 > 0:18:55but it won't grow into a perfect dome.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58It wants to grow every which way.
0:18:58 > 0:19:00So I decided I was going to have to spend the rest of my life
0:19:00 > 0:19:03being married to it, to cut it back into shape.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06It's a lovely leaf, but it doesn't know... It's got no manners on it.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10- Look at it.- Have you cut your husband into shape?- I haven't finished yet.
0:19:13 > 0:19:19What I like there, Diarmuid, is that long bed full of different ferns.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22A kind of Victorian fernery.
0:19:22 > 0:19:24Bringing the house in, settling it into...
0:19:24 > 0:19:27It makes that house sit down so beautifully on its sort of green.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31Yes, kind of. But...there's a problem there.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33- Big problem. Big problem. - Big problem.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38It's the small island in the lawn that offends Diarmuid.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41But it doesn't take long before they start to see the bigger picture.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44- Look at that.- There is your vista. - Things are looking up.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55- Yeah, look, pathway there.- I want to go round there.- We're drawn.
0:19:55 > 0:19:56Now, that, I find quite inviting.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00Charming. Absolutely charming.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04Away from the front lawn, a discreet path leads to a woodland area
0:20:04 > 0:20:06with lots of surprises.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09- Look at this.- Hen's teeth!
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Did many foxes die for that, or what?
0:20:12 > 0:20:16- I think it's how many Basil Brushes? - How many Basil Brushes, yes!
0:20:16 > 0:20:19- And look at this heavenly abutilon. - Oh, look at that!
0:20:19 > 0:20:23- I'm a sucker for pale mauve. - That colour against the sky!
0:20:23 > 0:20:25- Isn't that just gorgeous? - Do you know,
0:20:25 > 0:20:29we've come into an absolutely delightful woodland glade...
0:20:29 > 0:20:33- An absolute delight.- ..With an amazing collection of plants.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36There's some humour with the planting that's been introduced.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39I would not have expected a solanum there.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43I wouldn't have expected the abutilon. Anyway, this is charming.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46- Charming. - Charming and easily copyable.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57It changes completely. Lots of trees. The spire is great.
0:20:57 > 0:20:58Gorgeous view. Heavenly view.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01The view is just beautiful, with the mountains behind it.
0:21:01 > 0:21:03- Really gorgeous. - Things are looking up.
0:21:03 > 0:21:08But on the way back out to the lawn, there's another '70s hangover
0:21:08 > 0:21:10that is bound to catch their eye.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14To me, the whole of the back of that is dead.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17And it's not going to recover. That sort of tree doesn't recover,
0:21:17 > 0:21:21- which looks god-awful, quite frankly.- It's desperate.
0:21:21 > 0:21:23Would you grow something up it?
0:21:23 > 0:21:25No, I think it would be horrible and it wouldn't work.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29It would look like somebody... It's like putting lipstick on a gorilla.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32It's still a gorilla. That is a gorilla and gorillas must go.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36Every second garden in the country has this issue.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38And they don't do anything about it. They leave it there.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41- They leave it. Onwards! - Goodbye, fair tree. It's gone.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51- Well, this is lovely.- And shadow is so important.- This is beautiful.
0:21:57 > 0:22:02- See these globes?- Yes.- Do you know where that came from?- No.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06Do you remember a lollipop garden I did at the Chelsea Flower Show?
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Gosh, doesn't it spread?
0:22:08 > 0:22:11- Is that funny?- It's that same bright blue.- And that's where it came from.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Everyone's still using it and they're using it with an Easter Island head.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Sam's garden lets you wander into leafy cul-de-sacs
0:22:19 > 0:22:21peppered with his trademark humour.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26What on earth is that?!
0:22:26 > 0:22:28HE CHUCKLES
0:22:31 > 0:22:36Well, I think it denotes a certain...sense of humour.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39- Have you ever seen one of these before?- No.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45But, in amongst the humorous touches,
0:22:45 > 0:22:48there are some seriously-impressive plants.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51Now, here's your favourite plant.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54- See? - HE LAUGHS
0:22:54 > 0:22:56He's trying to catch me, you see.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59He's trying to catch me, because this here is the gunnera.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03A magnificent giant, very, very prickly whatsit there.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07And this looks just like it, but it's the rhubarb family. This is a rheum.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10This is related to rhubarb. Edible rhubarb.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13And I reckon whoever owns this garden has a sense of humour.
0:23:13 > 0:23:14He's had a joke. He said,
0:23:14 > 0:23:16"I'll just put them there and sort them all out."
0:23:22 > 0:23:27So, Helen, paint me a picture of the person who created this garden.
0:23:27 > 0:23:31Well, this is somebody who absolutely adores and loves
0:23:31 > 0:23:35and understands wooded plants, for a start.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37And adores The Grateful Dead,
0:23:37 > 0:23:40dipping foodstuff into melted cheese,
0:23:40 > 0:23:44probably Status Quo, also, and is stuck in the 1970s,
0:23:44 > 0:23:47but, with a sense of humour and, I think,
0:23:47 > 0:23:51for some very obvious reasons, it's a man.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Uh, possibly.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56Possibly. Now you mention it, definitely.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Time to meet Sam, the proud owner.
0:23:59 > 0:24:04Well, Sam, this garden, for us, has been an extraordinary surprise.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06Because, to be honest, when we got here,
0:24:06 > 0:24:10we weren't absolutely bananas about the new bit of planting in the front.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13- And then we walk into this paradise round the back here.- Right.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16I'm a collector, by trade. I just collect things.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20And trees are no different and shrubs are no different
0:24:20 > 0:24:24and they seem to have worked out. Now, life can change you a wee bit.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28The man above will thin out this and something thins out that,
0:24:28 > 0:24:32but what is left now has given me a lovely tapestry of being able
0:24:32 > 0:24:35to sit there and say, "Yes, this is mine."
0:24:35 > 0:24:39So your style of gardening revolves around curved shaped beds
0:24:39 > 0:24:43leading, opening up vistas, leading you to certain places,
0:24:43 > 0:24:47and appreciating what will grow in the Northern Irish climate.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50My garden started off like a jigsaw puzzle,
0:24:50 > 0:24:52but I added, this term, peninsulas.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56So all of a sudden, instead of plants 20 plants,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59I can plant 40 plants in the same area,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02but with having no straight lines, I can...
0:25:02 > 0:25:05A straight line would say to Helen, "I'm not walking 50 yards,
0:25:05 > 0:25:07"I can see it all in one go."
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Whereas, if I zig-zag round my garden,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13I can get Helen to do 200 yards
0:25:13 > 0:25:17and your mind tells you you haven't seen it all yet.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- And also you can disappear.- Yes. - You can go on a journey.- Yes.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23- So, that's what the garden means to you - creation and relaxation.- Yes.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26There are some things I haven't seen in any book.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28A few odd bits of sculpture.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32Yes, well, you've got to be humorous in your garden.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34You've got to make people smile and comment.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36You're smiling now, so you obviously enjoyed it.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39- It certainly had that effect.- Good.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41But I've never seen one wear a tie before.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45Well, I have a group coming tomorrow from the south of England
0:25:45 > 0:25:49and the organisers said we will have ladies in our company
0:25:49 > 0:25:51that might find that offensive.
0:25:51 > 0:25:53So he hasn't seen it with a tie on!
0:25:55 > 0:25:58We have thoroughly enjoyed that humour.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02We've thoroughly enjoyed your understanding
0:26:02 > 0:26:04of what could grow here
0:26:04 > 0:26:07and the private Eden that you've carved out here.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10How beautifully it's put together. It's put together exquisitely.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14So, three very different gardens.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18But which one did Diarmuid and Helen like best?
0:26:18 > 0:26:19Can they possibly pick a favourite?
0:26:21 > 0:26:24First, they considered Sam's Castlewellan woodland,
0:26:24 > 0:26:26created over 40 years.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28I did get a bit of a shock to begin with.
0:26:29 > 0:26:34But, it was, and Sam himself was, heaven itself.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37It just oozes out of him.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41He could tell me about every plant, where he bought it,
0:26:41 > 0:26:44why he placed it and what he was going to do in the future.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47In the one area, he would plant them all together
0:26:47 > 0:26:49and then he'd move them.
0:26:49 > 0:26:50Good. Good.
0:26:50 > 0:26:55What about William and Hillary's alpine extravaganza in Bessbrook?
0:26:55 > 0:26:59From a design point of view, it's hard to make a good design
0:26:59 > 0:27:05if you're raving mad collector, but things were beautiful planted.
0:27:05 > 0:27:10Their passion for collecting plants was absolutely wonderful.
0:27:10 > 0:27:15And understanding what those plants needed, the requirements.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19And she had her alpines and he had his clematis.
0:27:19 > 0:27:24There was a jolly mix, but too much of a squeezed mix in places.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29And, finally, Tracy's astonishing heritage heaven.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32I LOVE this garden.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34If I could live in any of the gardens that we saw,
0:27:34 > 0:27:36it would be this one.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40But from a design point of view,
0:27:40 > 0:27:42it's not going anywhere else.
0:27:42 > 0:27:46I think great thought has gone into which plants to leave
0:27:46 > 0:27:50and which plants to take out and, um, it's...
0:27:50 > 0:27:53There's a lovely balance of what was there
0:27:53 > 0:27:57and the new plants very slowly, gently coming in.
0:27:57 > 0:27:59It's not all happening, bang,
0:27:59 > 0:28:01with a sort of, "Bring in that lot and bring in the gang."
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Three unique gardens, but it's time to pick a favourite.
0:28:09 > 0:28:12- Sam.- Fantastic.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15It's hard because they're such different gardens,
0:28:15 > 0:28:19- but you can't be unhappy for Sam. - I'm delighted for Sam.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22So, well done to Sam, whose 40 years of hard work
0:28:22 > 0:28:26has edged it against some very impressive competition.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28So, what do you think, Diarmuid?
0:28:28 > 0:28:31Three amazing gardens and we could barely decide between them.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34I think it was all an absolute delight
0:28:34 > 0:28:38and thank you for joining us on our wonderful romp
0:28:38 > 0:28:40through some lovely gardens.
0:28:40 > 0:28:42- Goodbye!- Bye!