0:00:04 > 0:00:08Britain has some of the finest gardens anywhere in the world.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11For me, it's about getting in amongst the wonderful plants
0:00:11 > 0:00:12that flourish in this country
0:00:12 > 0:00:15and sharing the passion of the people who tend them.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19However, there's another way to enjoy a garden...
0:00:24 > 0:00:27..and that's to get up above it.
0:00:30 > 0:00:31I love ballooning
0:00:31 > 0:00:35because you get to see the world below in a whole new light.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37From up here, you get a real sense
0:00:37 > 0:00:40of how the garden sits in the landscape,
0:00:40 > 0:00:43how the terrain and the climate has shaped it.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47And I want you to share that experience with me.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08This is a day that promises wonderful flying weather
0:01:08 > 0:01:11and a chance to see one of Britain's most wonderful counties.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15We're exploring Oxfordshire today
0:01:15 > 0:01:18and, despite being one of the most-densely populated counties
0:01:18 > 0:01:20in the country,
0:01:20 > 0:01:22it still remains mainly rural.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26Oxfordshire lies in the South,
0:01:26 > 0:01:28bordered by Gloucestershire to the West
0:01:28 > 0:01:30and Buckinghamshire to the East.
0:01:33 > 0:01:34Being landlocked,
0:01:34 > 0:01:38Oxfordshire is furthest from the paths of most Atlantic depressions,
0:01:38 > 0:01:42with their cloud, wind and rain, so the climate is relatively calm.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46Perfect, in fact, for ballooning and gardening.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49The geography of Oxfordshire is very varied.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51In the North, we have the rich Redlands
0:01:51 > 0:01:55and, in the West, the beautiful Cotswolds.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57And slap-bang in the middle of the county
0:01:57 > 0:02:00is that ancient seat of learning, Oxford University.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05But I'm here to see the gardens.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08Today, I'm dropping in on two Oxfordshire gardens
0:02:08 > 0:02:10begun by formidable women,
0:02:10 > 0:02:14whose legacy is now under the guardianship of the next generation.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16Now, you worked with Miss Havergal.
0:02:16 > 0:02:18What was it like during that period?
0:02:18 > 0:02:20She could be very, very strict.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22The farmers would be quite frightened of her.
0:02:22 > 0:02:23CHRISTINE CHUCKLES
0:02:23 > 0:02:26We'll be messing about on the river at Henley-on-Thames,
0:02:26 > 0:02:29where your knees might come under some scrutiny!
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Women at the regatta are always expected to wear a dress
0:02:32 > 0:02:34and the dress has to be below the knee,
0:02:34 > 0:02:36otherwise they will be told to leave.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39And I do a bit of inspection myself.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42Go on, how many manky ones have you got?
0:02:42 > 0:02:43Have you got a manky one?
0:02:43 > 0:02:46- Oh, look.- Oh, look, you've got one! Yeah!- Yeah.- One each.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48- You caught me.- One each. - HE LAUGHS
0:02:53 > 0:02:55From my bird's-eye view in the sky,
0:02:55 > 0:02:58I'm looking out for a very special eight acres.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03And there they are, Waterperry House and Gardens,
0:03:03 > 0:03:06one of Britain's first ever horticultural schools for women.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12Waterperry Gardens lie close to the eastern border of the county.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17This grand house in the grounds was not only a school,
0:03:17 > 0:03:20it was home to the Waterperry girls,
0:03:20 > 0:03:24the first generation of women horticulturists who studied here.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30Most of the garden I'll be visiting today lies south of the house.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35Here, the relaxed landscaping becomes more formal and structured.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Vistas lead you through to intimate and peaceful spaces
0:03:39 > 0:03:43like this one, the Tudor-inspired Formal Garden.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47Or, if you follow your nose,
0:03:47 > 0:03:50you'll find yourself tipsy with the scent in the Mary Rose Garden.
0:03:52 > 0:03:54But, high as I am,
0:03:54 > 0:03:58one feature of this garden stands out above all others.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02One of the most exciting things about viewing Waterperry from above
0:04:02 > 0:04:06is that you can see the vast amount of colour that's down there.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09The borders just rippling along the walls,
0:04:09 > 0:04:12the intensity of the colour from the trials beds.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17All brought together with passion, and I can't wait to get down there.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30I enjoy coming to Waterperry
0:04:30 > 0:04:34because of the connection of women and gardening.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37It was a school and, for me, having been in education myself,
0:04:37 > 0:04:39that's very important.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41It's the standard, it's the love.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45Every time you come, you feel an intimacy,
0:04:45 > 0:04:49a special atmosphere within this garden.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53Plants, people and education coming together
0:04:53 > 0:04:55to create a very beautiful garden.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03The Waterperry Gardening School was started by this towering lady,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05Beatrix Havergal.
0:05:07 > 0:05:08Beatrix was a passionate gardener
0:05:08 > 0:05:11and a woman of formidable determination.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15Her dream of establishing a horticultural school for girls
0:05:15 > 0:05:18came to fruition here in 1932.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23Students would undergo two years of rigorous training
0:05:23 > 0:05:26and leave with the cherished Waterperry Diploma.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30During the Second World War, Waterperry became a market garden
0:05:30 > 0:05:32for much-needed food production
0:05:32 > 0:05:35and accommodating members of the Women's Land Army.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39They were soon put to work ploughing and Digging For Victory.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44Miss Havergal, dressed as always with a smartly knotted tie,
0:05:44 > 0:05:49cut a singular figure and she had two very distinct ambitions.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54One was her principle of achieving horticultural excellence -
0:05:54 > 0:05:58lines had to be straight, plants correctly planted.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Secondly, she believed in sharing and passing on the knowledge
0:06:02 > 0:06:05and the opening up of opportunities for women.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09When one student told her that she would be leaving to get married,
0:06:09 > 0:06:13Miss Havergal cried, "But what about the garden?!"
0:06:13 > 0:06:15Miss Havergal retired
0:06:15 > 0:06:19and sold Waterperry in 1971 to the School of Economic Science,
0:06:19 > 0:06:23and she died nine years later, aged 79.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30Her legacy not only lives on through this beautiful garden
0:06:30 > 0:06:33but through the thousands of girls who studied under her.
0:06:33 > 0:06:35One such girl is Mary Spiller,
0:06:35 > 0:06:40who continued Miss Havergal's work at Waterperry after she died.
0:06:40 > 0:06:41I'll be meeting her later.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48She in turn trained and continues to influence
0:06:48 > 0:06:53the latest custodian of the garden, horticultural manager Rob Jacobs,
0:06:53 > 0:06:55who's working in Waterperry's orchards.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00Hi, Rob. I thought it was you down here. How are you?
0:07:00 > 0:07:01Hello, I'm all right.
0:07:01 > 0:07:03I can see you're picking. Do you want a hand?
0:07:03 > 0:07:04Yes. Well, we've got you a bag.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07Oh, ey, great! Let's cross it over do this...
0:07:07 > 0:07:09- Yeah, arms through there. - Head through.- The bottom one.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12- That's it.- That's it.- I remember these, from t'old days. Aye.
0:07:14 > 0:07:16Right, where are we going to start?
0:07:16 > 0:07:18There we are.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Gentle, tender, loving care.
0:07:22 > 0:07:23No fingers.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26You cup the apple and you rotate it up.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29So there's no damage and everything's hunky-dory.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32- What you don't want is to use your fingertips.- Right.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36And if you ever bite into an apple and there's a little bruise,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38you can put your fingers to it and you can see
0:07:38 > 0:07:41and, you know, when we're picking, it happens
0:07:41 > 0:07:43and Chris, our fruit manager, he has to come out
0:07:43 > 0:07:45and he has a little rant at everybody -
0:07:45 > 0:07:47they're not using their hands, not rolling it up.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50So if you can feel pressure on your fingertips,
0:07:50 > 0:07:52- you're picking the apple wrong.- Mm.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55'Waterperry is pretty famous for its apples.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57'They have over five acres of orchards
0:07:57 > 0:08:02'and grow around 60 varieties for eating, pressing and cider making.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05'It's no wonder Rob takes so much care with the fruit.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09'As a custodian, he has a very strong tradition to uphold.'
0:08:09 > 0:08:13In a magazine called The Fruit Grower, in the '70s,
0:08:13 > 0:08:19they said the five most influential people for growing fruit
0:08:19 > 0:08:23in the last 100 years, four men
0:08:23 > 0:08:24and one woman - Beatrix Havergal.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27There you go, you see.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29For many years Miss Havergal won gold medals
0:08:29 > 0:08:33at the Chelsea Flower Show for her exhibit of one particular fruit,
0:08:33 > 0:08:35the strawberry.
0:08:39 > 0:08:45Is there a fruit more evocative of a British summer than a strawberry?
0:08:45 > 0:08:46I don't think so.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50It's actually a member of the rose family,
0:08:50 > 0:08:54and its wild cousins were found all over the temperate world.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57It was the crossbreeding of these wild strawberries
0:08:57 > 0:09:00that give us the succulent, sweet fruits we eat today.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05Summer-fruiting varieties are the largest and most popular.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09They have a short but heavy cropping period over two to three weeks,
0:09:09 > 0:09:11but planting different varieties
0:09:11 > 0:09:14can provide you with a crop from early to late summer.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Pick them when they're bright red all over,
0:09:18 > 0:09:20and eat them at room temperature,
0:09:20 > 0:09:23because this is when they're at their most tasty.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29What was it like working here as a youngster?
0:09:29 > 0:09:32- Oh, as a young man?- Yeah. - Um, it was slightly scary.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36- At the time, the two ladies who did my job were Mary Spiller...- Yeah.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39..and a lovely lady called Jean Manger.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43But you had to do things THEIR way.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Well, what's it like, being bossed by women?
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Do you know, I've never seen it like that and it's only cos...
0:09:48 > 0:09:49(they're right.)
0:09:49 > 0:09:52CHRISTINE LAUGHS (Ssh!)
0:09:52 > 0:09:55Now you did say, "It's only because they're right."
0:09:55 > 0:09:57I've got two daughters and a wife at home,
0:09:57 > 0:09:58so it's good for me to say that.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00SHE LAUGHS
0:10:01 > 0:10:02Get these in there, then.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06Right. Careful and steady. If you release the side there.
0:10:06 > 0:10:08I've done this before, you know.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10You can come here again, you know, Christine.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12- Can I have a job?- Yeah.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15As she goes because you don't want to bruise them.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19There you are, you just withdraw it gently and there you are, you see.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Oh, was there an offending soul in there?
0:10:24 > 0:10:28Well, you're never going to get it absolutely right, I mean.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31Go on, how many manky ones have you got?
0:10:31 > 0:10:33- Have you got a manky one? - Oh, look at that one.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35Oh, look, you have got one. Yeah, one each.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37- You caught me.- One each.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39So how many apple varieties have you got here?
0:10:39 > 0:10:41Well, on-site we've got about 63
0:10:41 > 0:10:46but we've actually got a tree that we call our little family tree.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50It's a bit more than a family tree. Nearly all the varieties of apples.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53- On one tree?- Yeah. Do you want to see it?
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Cor, yeah, come on, let's go and have a shufty.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03Blimey, there's a lot of different varieties on this.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05Do you like it? It's just to show how clever we are.
0:11:05 > 0:11:06It's our family tree.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08Great, so a lot of different grafting been going on here.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10Yeah.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13Grafting, where a section of a stem with leaf buds from one
0:11:13 > 0:11:18variety is inserted into part of a tree, is a horticultural technique.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23You combine one tree's best qualities with
0:11:23 > 0:11:27the roots of another tree that offers vigour and resilience.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29Apple is malus domesticus.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33It has the most forgiving, stretchy, cambium layer of any tree.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35So the bark...
0:11:35 > 0:11:37So if you want to do something clever.
0:11:37 > 0:11:38Yeah, the bark, the green bit underneath.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42You want to do anything clever, do it with malus domesticus. It's wonderful.
0:11:42 > 0:11:43Grafting is an ancient skill.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47The Chinese were performing grafts over 4,000 years ago,
0:11:47 > 0:11:52before the knowledge travelled across the continents to Europe.
0:11:52 > 0:11:56This 25-year-old mother tree is a variety called Spartan
0:11:56 > 0:11:59but has approximately 50 other varieties growing from it.
0:11:59 > 0:12:00If you look in here.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03We'll pull that out the way, can you see the fuse in the bark?
0:12:03 > 0:12:06- That's been where...- That's the old bark...- And that's the new.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10- ..and this is all the fuse. - ..and that's the new branch.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12And how old would that be, then?
0:12:12 > 0:12:14Well, this is quite vigorous.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16I think they're now grafts on to grafts.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18So this would be about three to four years
0:12:18 > 0:12:20because we've been doing it about seven years now.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23One of our local varieties is Oxford Beauty, here.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26- Oh, right.- It's doing all right. - It's all right that.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29It's not too bad. We also have Eynsham Dumpling down there.
0:12:29 > 0:12:30I can see that, yeah.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32Right at the back, you can see that's the weak one.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34On the other side there's Old Fred. That's Old Fred Wastie.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Oh, I can see that. Yeah, I can see that, yeah.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41Old Fred Wastie, he was the man that actually bred all these
0:12:41 > 0:12:43Oxford varieties, or most of these Oxford varieties.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46We've even got a little orchard of them.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48- Just a few trees standing. - Lovely.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52- It's keeping that genetic material in the county.- Absolutely.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01Before buying Waterperry,
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Miss Havergal ran another small garden
0:13:03 > 0:13:06and, to make ends meet, she'd sell the produce at a local market.
0:13:10 > 0:13:11Times may have changed
0:13:11 > 0:13:15but the ambition of bringing affordable local food to the people
0:13:15 > 0:13:19of Oxford has been grasped by a new breed of producers in a unique way.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21This is Cultivate.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26Cultivate is a co-operative, which sells fruit
0:13:26 > 0:13:30and vegetables from its farm directly to the public.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34This is one of several vans that they have operating in the city.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38- Thank you. - Bye, see you soon.- Bye.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42But what they sell comes from here, a ten acre community farm.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46Over £80,000 was raised three years ago to rent the land
0:13:46 > 0:13:48and fund the start-up costs.
0:13:52 > 0:13:54Now, nearly 400 members
0:13:54 > 0:13:57and volunteers support the co-op with their time and hard work.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Tracey Jones is one of them.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04Community farms are absolutely brilliant in that they bring
0:14:04 > 0:14:07people on to the land that haven't got their own land
0:14:07 > 0:14:10but can just have the opportunity to come out on odd days
0:14:10 > 0:14:15and experience what it's like to grow food and harvest food.
0:14:15 > 0:14:21So it's really, really important to bring people into farming
0:14:21 > 0:14:23that wouldn't necessarily get a chance to do it.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25It's an Oxford-based farm
0:14:25 > 0:14:27and a number of the members are very well-educated.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30One of the founders, Joe Hassel,
0:14:30 > 0:14:35is a former philosophy, politics and economics student.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39I came to Oxford to study and in my undergraduate days,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43I did nothing to do with horticulture or food production.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45I just really got into gardening.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Then I carried on to do a horticultural apprenticeship.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52The benefits of this type of food production are abundant.
0:14:52 > 0:14:57One great thing about local food economies is the variety you get
0:14:57 > 0:14:58in every aspect.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00I mean we're growing five or six different
0:15:00 > 0:15:04varieties of tomato in this little polytunnel, so you get your
0:15:04 > 0:15:07punnet of tomatoes and it's not one cherry, you've got five different
0:15:07 > 0:15:10cherry tomato varieties and I think people really appreciate that.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13It makes you engage with your food, it makes you think about it,
0:15:13 > 0:15:16it makes you cook it differently, it makes you taste it differently.
0:15:16 > 0:15:21Today, volunteer Niko O'Brien is harvesting veg for sale
0:15:21 > 0:15:22later in the vans
0:15:22 > 0:15:26I'm picking peppers and I'm aiming for the bigger ones
0:15:26 > 0:15:31rather than the smaller ones because some of them can still grow.
0:15:31 > 0:15:35So, right now, they are going in this little box
0:15:35 > 0:15:37and then taken on to the veg van
0:15:37 > 0:15:41where they will be sold in various stops around Oxford.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43- There we are.- Well done.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46But the farm is also educational and it's a great way of teaching kids
0:15:46 > 0:15:49about the food they eat and where it comes from.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51And then this one. Do you want to grab this one?
0:15:51 > 0:15:54And so you're trying to do it without pulling out the other ones.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56So if you hold it by the root, that's it, it's a bit easier,
0:15:56 > 0:15:58I find.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00- Yeah!- Hooray!
0:16:00 > 0:16:04Champion beetroot, look at that. That's very good.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08Once picked, the produce is then distributed to the veg vans,
0:16:08 > 0:16:11where an appreciative and hungry clientele awaits.
0:16:11 > 0:16:16Star of the show is these, which Mia calls sweetie tomatoes
0:16:16 > 0:16:20and some really nice blueberries. We've got some beetroot,
0:16:20 > 0:16:23so I'm just going to experiment with some beetroots and halloumi
0:16:23 > 0:16:28and from Cultivate's own farm, some really nice peppers.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31At the moment, the tomatoes are flying off the shelves.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Those really juicy little yellow tomatoes,
0:16:34 > 0:16:37which are really sweet, so they're great.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40Beans, chard, spinach, everything just looks
0:16:40 > 0:16:42so delicious as well, all spread out on the van.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45Everyone's like, "Yeah, I'll have a bit of that, a bit of that."
0:16:45 > 0:16:47It's been a real journey for me, in terms of discovering what is
0:16:47 > 0:16:50actually available in the local area and it means that
0:16:50 > 0:16:54I can also take the next generation along, my daughter,
0:16:54 > 0:16:58to see how stuff is grown and that's also really great for her.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01Cos that was a bit of a mystery for me as a kid, I think.
0:17:01 > 0:17:05I think it's really nice that you can get to know your local
0:17:05 > 0:17:08veg van driver and they're like your link to the farm
0:17:08 > 0:17:10and you can find out what they've been growing,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13what they're planning to put in the ground for next week.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16It's great. You can see where your food's come from.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19I couldn't agree more.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23Delicious, locally grown fruit and veg is what we're all looking for
0:17:23 > 0:17:26and here it is, right on the doorstep.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28Miss Havergal would certainly have approved.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35Becoming a custodian to someone else's life's work
0:17:35 > 0:17:37could become a great burden
0:17:37 > 0:17:41but, in former Waterperry student Mary Spiller's safe hands,
0:17:41 > 0:17:43the gardens continued to flourish.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Now a sprightly 90-year-old,
0:17:45 > 0:17:48to this day, Mary still tends her own garden.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51But as a young woman,
0:17:51 > 0:17:54opportunities to garden were a little more limited.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58I had to decide what I was going to do when I left school
0:17:58 > 0:18:04and of course, all I knew I wanted was an outdoor life.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06But this was wartime, so I said,
0:18:06 > 0:18:11"Well, a Land Army's much more of an outdoor life, I'm going to do that,"
0:18:11 > 0:18:13and so that's how I got into it.
0:18:15 > 0:18:20It was quite a hard life and you were working all day.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23Each student would have a strip of land to hand dig
0:18:23 > 0:18:27and it had to be perfectly level.
0:18:27 > 0:18:34Miss Havergal was a perfectionist and because she was so enthusiastic,
0:18:34 > 0:18:38you believed that perfection could be achieved.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40You just worked for it and you didn't mind
0:18:40 > 0:18:43because it gave you a great sense of fulfilment.
0:18:43 > 0:18:47After graduating, Mary returned to Waterperry to lecture
0:18:47 > 0:18:49and develop more of the gardens.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52And, like Miss Havergal, she broke new boundaries too
0:18:52 > 0:18:58when she became the first female presenter of Gardeners' World.
0:18:58 > 0:19:00Well, we've had a really terrible winter
0:19:00 > 0:19:02but not everything has suffered.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06We've got some really gorgeous pussy willows here,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09making us think that spring is coming at last.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Mary and the rest of the staff at Waterperry feel very much
0:19:12 > 0:19:16the custodians of Miss Havergal's vision for the garden and her
0:19:16 > 0:19:20prized herbaceous border has been lovingly tended for over 50 years.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Mary, you've been associated with Waterperry for a very long time
0:19:26 > 0:19:30but what were the principles you used to create these beautiful borders?
0:19:30 > 0:19:36Well, it was really the idea that was current in the 20th century,
0:19:36 > 0:19:40in that this was just purely herbaceous.
0:19:40 > 0:19:45No bulbs, no shrubs, no bedding,
0:19:45 > 0:19:50and so you had to get your display by how you arranged your plants
0:19:50 > 0:19:53and chose them and it was basically three seasons.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55The first was May/June.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59But if they were going to be planted in the front,
0:19:59 > 0:20:02they'd got to look good after flowering
0:20:02 > 0:20:05because you then had your next season,
0:20:05 > 0:20:09which was the June/July, delphiniums,
0:20:09 > 0:20:13the tall verbascums, phloxes. Lovely time, wonderful time.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14Yeah, all that colour and fireworks.
0:20:14 > 0:20:16Oh, yes, that's right.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18And so you put those
0:20:18 > 0:20:21so that, as they grew up,
0:20:21 > 0:20:23they hid the early flowering,
0:20:23 > 0:20:25and then you had the late season,
0:20:25 > 0:20:27which was the September/October.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30So it was quite a tricky planning device.
0:20:30 > 0:20:32The idea behind it was
0:20:32 > 0:20:35- that you did the work at certain times of the year...- Quite.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37..and if you've got bulbs there,
0:20:37 > 0:20:40- they get in the way when you're digging in the autumn.- Quite.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43- You bring up a handful of bulbs. - That's right.
0:20:43 > 0:20:44But it was great fun, yes,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48and Miss Havergal, this was her pride and joy,
0:20:48 > 0:20:51and she arranged it and she taught me how to do it,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54and then I looked after it for about 30 years too.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57Well, it still looks good today, as I'm sure it did in those days.
0:20:57 > 0:20:59Yes, well, they've carried on very, very well,
0:20:59 > 0:21:02they're using the same principles.
0:21:02 > 0:21:03Now, you worked with Miss Havergal.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06What was it like during that period?
0:21:06 > 0:21:08Well, it was hard work, of course,
0:21:08 > 0:21:12because she expected perfection.
0:21:12 > 0:21:14She could be very, very strict. Very strict.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18I mean, big farmers would be quite frightened of her.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20- CHRISTINE LAUGHS - But on the other hand,
0:21:20 > 0:21:22she was very sweet to everyone,
0:21:22 > 0:21:25she was very caring for people.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27We all ate together in a dining room,
0:21:27 > 0:21:29we played together in the evenings,
0:21:29 > 0:21:31went on the river together.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34So you enjoyed it, you worked hard,
0:21:34 > 0:21:37because she'd got such a lot of enthusiasm.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40She wanted it to succeed,
0:21:40 > 0:21:42and so you wanted it to succeed.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45And then you had a great sense of achievement when things did -
0:21:45 > 0:21:47when you grew a crop well or didn't.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Yeah, occasionally!
0:21:49 > 0:21:51Not so good.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53I remember once forgetting to move a line,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55so when the seedlings came up
0:21:55 > 0:21:58they were V-shaped instead of parallel,
0:21:58 > 0:22:02but luckily we'd remembered just in time and sowed the extra line.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04Excellent!
0:22:04 > 0:22:08So before she could get out there, we were hoeing it off quickly.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10While the cat's away, the mice'll play!
0:22:10 > 0:22:12That's right, yes, absolutely.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20One newer feature, developed by Mary,
0:22:20 > 0:22:21is the water-lily canal
0:22:21 > 0:22:24on the eastern border of the garden.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28It looks fantastic now, but it's given Rob a few headaches.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34So, Mary, what made you create this canal?
0:22:34 > 0:22:37Well, we were finding that visitors were tending to stay
0:22:37 > 0:22:38in the bottom part of the garden,
0:22:38 > 0:22:42and so we put in that semi-circular bed
0:22:42 > 0:22:44with brilliant colours in it.
0:22:44 > 0:22:48But then that left us a rather empty space between the two,
0:22:48 > 0:22:50so I thought the canal would just join the two.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53But I didn't want anything too elaborate,
0:22:53 > 0:22:56because you're looking out to the countryside.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59- To a lovely landscape. - Yes, that's right.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02And so I didn't want lots of fountains and statues and things,
0:23:02 > 0:23:05so we kept it very low-key.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08But then it means you come across it almost unexpectedly.
0:23:08 > 0:23:09And then it's quite exciting,
0:23:09 > 0:23:11cos you've got all these different water lilies.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13That's right, it's rather nice.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16And what about maintaining it and looking after it?
0:23:16 > 0:23:18Maintaining it. Well, first problem we had
0:23:18 > 0:23:20- is our tap water is quite limey.- Right.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23We had huge lime-level issues,
0:23:23 > 0:23:27and as soon as we sorted that problem out, duckweed came in.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30So I didn't realise Mary was setting me one challenge after another
0:23:30 > 0:23:32when she came up with the concept.
0:23:32 > 0:23:33It's the principles.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36You've got to keep going back to those strong principles.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39One of the principles we were given is that the water should re-balance,
0:23:39 > 0:23:43and so I took a dangerous thing last year,
0:23:43 > 0:23:46where I said, "I'm not doing anything for 12 months",
0:23:46 > 0:23:47and it's actually worked.
0:23:47 > 0:23:49And we've got there.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51You see, ponds, naturally,
0:23:51 > 0:23:52given the right circumstances,
0:23:52 > 0:23:54will actually re-balance.
0:23:54 > 0:23:55I don't put any tap water in any more.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57- No.- I leave it to the rain. - That's the trouble.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00Tap water, you've got ammonia, you've got fluorine,
0:24:00 > 0:24:02you've got chlorine, you've got all sorts of things.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04And they need to evaporate off
0:24:04 > 0:24:06and, though you've got the large surface area,
0:24:06 > 0:24:08you've still got to get it to evaporate off.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12You know, whereas Mother Nature... Nice acid water. Yeah.
0:24:12 > 0:24:13So, I think, you know,
0:24:13 > 0:24:16sometimes doing nothing is the answer.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19In this occasion it absolutely was.
0:24:19 > 0:24:20Yeah, yeah.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22You need to train someone,
0:24:22 > 0:24:25because then they get the ideas behind the work.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27- Absolutely.- They know what you're aiming at,
0:24:27 > 0:24:31- and that's the main thing, isn't it? - It absolutely is.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33I have to stop myself
0:24:33 > 0:24:35and listen to what Mary has said,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37to make sure I keep repeating that,
0:24:37 > 0:24:40and keep that ethos going on all the time.
0:24:40 > 0:24:44And, you see, you will pass that on to the next person,
0:24:44 > 0:24:46and they will have it ringing in their ears.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48- Yes.- Yes, of course.
0:24:48 > 0:24:49Come on, let's have a look.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57Waterperry is such a special place to me, and countless others,
0:24:57 > 0:24:58that I want to give a tribute
0:24:58 > 0:25:01to honour Mary's lifelong custodianship
0:25:01 > 0:25:03of Miss Havergal's legacy.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07So I've asked local artist Rachel Ducker, who sculpts with wire,
0:25:07 > 0:25:10to make a piece of artwork for the garden.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12Waterperry has featured heavily in her life too.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17I used to take my son to Waterperry
0:25:17 > 0:25:18when he was very young.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21Really gorgeous to sit out there
0:25:21 > 0:25:23and have a cup of tea and walk around,
0:25:23 > 0:25:27and I like the ethos of the whole place,
0:25:27 > 0:25:29being very spiritual
0:25:29 > 0:25:32and to do with kindness and giving...
0:25:34 > 0:25:36..and you can feel that when you're there.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40Rachel initially started as a jeweller,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43before she moved on to wire sculptures.
0:25:43 > 0:25:45I love trying to catch a moment.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48I sort of see my work as a bit of 3-D photography in a way,
0:25:48 > 0:25:50because it's a snapshot of a moment,
0:25:50 > 0:25:51is what I'm trying to catch,
0:25:51 > 0:25:55and that's why I try and get the energy of the movement
0:25:55 > 0:25:57with the hands, the hair.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00Everything, just creating a scene, really.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03Rachel's sculptures have featured at the Chelsea Flower Show,
0:26:03 > 0:26:06and in gardens that have won a coveted gold medal,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10but creating one for Waterperry is very special.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14I'm really thrilled that I'm going to have a piece of my work in the garden there, actually.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16Because I've been there for so many years
0:26:16 > 0:26:18and I've had my work in the gallery there,
0:26:18 > 0:26:21it's just lovely that I'll have a piece that will stay there...
0:26:21 > 0:26:24for however long...it will.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26I'm really happy about that.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33Protecting and caring for someone's legacy in one lifetime
0:26:33 > 0:26:35is no mean feat,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38but 25 miles west of Waterperry,
0:26:38 > 0:26:41an Oxfordshire landmark has been cared for by local people
0:26:41 > 0:26:43for the last three millennia.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47And the best view of what they care for is up in the sky.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55This beautiful creature is the world-famous Uffington White Horse.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00Leaping across a hill over 800 feet high,
0:27:00 > 0:27:02it can be seen for miles around.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06It's not the only chalk figure carved into the British countryside
0:27:06 > 0:27:11but, at almost 400 feet long and 110 feet high,
0:27:11 > 0:27:14it's certainly the biggest.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16And, dating back to the Bronze Age,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18it's the oldest too.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24Below the horse is a dramatic dry valley known as The Manger,
0:27:24 > 0:27:27with its sides rippled by the retreating permafrost
0:27:27 > 0:27:29during the last Ice Age.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32Legend has it that it's where the white horse descends
0:27:32 > 0:27:33to feed at night.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41Imagine arriving in this vale 3,000 years ago
0:27:41 > 0:27:45and seeing this majestic beast for the first time -
0:27:45 > 0:27:48the awe and the reverence it must have inspired.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51Before the gods that made the gods
0:27:51 > 0:27:53Had seen their sunrise pass
0:27:53 > 0:27:56The White Horse of the White Horse Vale
0:27:56 > 0:27:58Was cut out of the grass.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03But why the horse was carved into the hill
0:28:03 > 0:28:04still remains a bit of a mystery.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06There are burial mounds nearby,
0:28:06 > 0:28:10so a link to death and the spirits is possible.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12In fact, people still bring ashes of the deceased
0:28:12 > 0:28:14to scatter over the hill.
0:28:15 > 0:28:17National Trust Ranger Andrew Foley
0:28:17 > 0:28:20is entrusted with the upkeep of the White Horse,
0:28:20 > 0:28:23but he has own theory about its origins.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27It's not meant for human eyes, in my opinion.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29It's set on the side of this hill in Oxfordshire,
0:28:29 > 0:28:32one of the highest points, it faces the setting sun,
0:28:32 > 0:28:36it's positioned above a landscape that cannot be explained
0:28:36 > 0:28:37by ancient man,
0:28:37 > 0:28:40so everything points to - it's an offering towards the gods.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43One of those gods being Epona, which was a horse goddess,
0:28:43 > 0:28:47so my theory is that this is an offering to that god.
0:28:47 > 0:28:48Bring us good harvests,
0:28:48 > 0:28:51bring us fortune, bring us long life.
0:28:51 > 0:28:52That's what I think it is.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55But why would the image of a horse
0:28:55 > 0:28:59be so meaningful to Bronze Age inhabitants of the vale?
0:28:59 > 0:29:02Horses were symbols of power and status.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05Most people were born, lived and died in the same village
0:29:05 > 0:29:07and hardly ever travelled at all.
0:29:07 > 0:29:09So if you've got a horse, you have to be somebody important,
0:29:09 > 0:29:13you have to be probably a chieftain or a high-class warrior.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17A white horse would also symbolise your power and status,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20because most native horses in the country
0:29:20 > 0:29:23were brown, dull nags or cobs.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25White horses would have been arriving in the country
0:29:25 > 0:29:28through trade with Europe or beyond.
0:29:28 > 0:29:30So, again, if you're that high-status
0:29:30 > 0:29:32and you've got a white horse,
0:29:32 > 0:29:35it's pretty much like driving down the high street in a Ferrari
0:29:35 > 0:29:37instead of a Ford Fiesta.
0:29:39 > 0:29:44Over the millennia, the White Horse has attracted some unique folklore.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48Well, here we're working on the eye of the horse.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50It's probably the most visited part of the horse
0:29:50 > 0:29:53that people come to look at.
0:29:53 > 0:29:55There was a couple of legends associated with it.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57Firstly, it is said that,
0:29:57 > 0:30:00should a maiden stand in the eye of the horse,
0:30:00 > 0:30:03within one full year she will be with child -
0:30:03 > 0:30:05take that as you will.
0:30:05 > 0:30:07The second legend is that,
0:30:07 > 0:30:09should you stand in here and spin round three times,
0:30:09 > 0:30:11it will bring you good luck.
0:30:11 > 0:30:15But that really doesn't help us with the National Trust management,
0:30:15 > 0:30:18obviously we're trying to fight erosion everywhere across the horse
0:30:18 > 0:30:21and that's why we have signs saying, "Please keep off."
0:30:21 > 0:30:22We want you to enjoy,
0:30:22 > 0:30:25but we'd like you to help us preserve it as well.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29The horse is formed of deep trenches filled with crushed chalk.
0:30:29 > 0:30:33Countless visitors, and rain washing the chalk down the steep hill,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35means it has to have constant care
0:30:35 > 0:30:37or the lines of the figure would quickly become obscured.
0:30:40 > 0:30:42OK, so what I'm doing here is
0:30:42 > 0:30:46I'm pounding chalk back into the eye of the figure of the horse.
0:30:46 > 0:30:48It's a very labour-intensive job,
0:30:48 > 0:30:50there's no great technology to it, as you can see.
0:30:50 > 0:30:52Things probably haven't changed over the years.
0:30:52 > 0:30:56It's just extremely... We call it like painting the Forth Bridge.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59As soon as you've finished, you think you've finished,
0:30:59 > 0:31:01then it's time to start all over again.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03But perhaps the greatest enigma
0:31:03 > 0:31:05surrounding this ancient white horse,
0:31:05 > 0:31:07is that local people must have looked after it
0:31:07 > 0:31:10for it to have survived for 3,000 years.
0:31:10 > 0:31:14Whatever their reason for doing so, I'm so glad they did.
0:31:22 > 0:31:23As you fly over the county,
0:31:23 > 0:31:26you realise how quintessentially English and restrained
0:31:26 > 0:31:28the landscape is.
0:31:28 > 0:31:30And the next Oxfordshire garden I'm visiting
0:31:30 > 0:31:33wonderfully reflects that setting - Kingston Bagpuize.
0:31:38 > 0:31:41Like Waterperry, it's a 20th-century garden
0:31:41 > 0:31:43created by a formidable woman,
0:31:43 > 0:31:47and her legacy, too, is being guarded by the next generation.
0:31:48 > 0:31:52It's a young garden but, viewed from above,
0:31:52 > 0:31:55you can just see how wide that herbaceous border is.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58Fantastic trees, marvellous planting
0:31:58 > 0:32:00and some great landscapes.
0:32:07 > 0:32:11Flying from the east, a stately sentinel of mature trees
0:32:11 > 0:32:14creates a natural avenue that leads to the house itself.
0:32:15 > 0:32:17On the north side lies a formal lawn
0:32:17 > 0:32:19trimmed by straight-edged paths,
0:32:19 > 0:32:22encompassing newly planted Portuguese laurel trees
0:32:22 > 0:32:24and an elegant fountain.
0:32:26 > 0:32:30Further north, informal paths lead you through the trees and shrubs
0:32:30 > 0:32:32into the parkland.
0:32:33 > 0:32:36This isn't a garden that screams in your face.
0:32:36 > 0:32:40It has a softer voice which gently encourages you to stroll within it.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48It was started by well-to-do spinster Marlie Raphael,
0:32:48 > 0:32:51who bought Kingston Bagpuize in 1939
0:32:51 > 0:32:54and spent the rest of her life developing her beloved garden.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59Plans were laid out, plants were bought,
0:32:59 > 0:33:02and a lifetime's work of creating a garden begun.
0:33:05 > 0:33:07She travelled extensively, visiting gardens around the world,
0:33:07 > 0:33:12and bringing back plants to see if they could work at home.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15She was determined to create a garden of her own.
0:33:17 > 0:33:19After her death in 1976,
0:33:19 > 0:33:21the gardens became a little less loved.
0:33:23 > 0:33:26Thankfully, Virginia Grant and her late husband inherited,
0:33:26 > 0:33:29and began to restore the garden to its former glory.
0:33:31 > 0:33:33- Hi, Virginia.- Hi, Christine, lovely to see you.
0:33:33 > 0:33:35- Yeah, how are you?- I'm fine, thanks.
0:33:35 > 0:33:36What are you up to?
0:33:36 > 0:33:40Well, I'm just sort of slightly doing a gentle trim,
0:33:40 > 0:33:42more than a sort of hard prune, on these Portuguese laurel.
0:33:42 > 0:33:45- Is that just to balance them up a bit?- It's just to balance them up.
0:33:45 > 0:33:47If you look at them all, they've not all grown evenly.
0:33:47 > 0:33:49But, also, I want it to be
0:33:49 > 0:33:52so that next year's flowering wood isn't all cut off,
0:33:52 > 0:33:54which is what I think is going to be done
0:33:54 > 0:33:56if you cut them into a lollipop.
0:33:56 > 0:33:57So it's just short back and sides.
0:33:57 > 0:34:00It's... Yeah, pretty much so, pretty much so.
0:34:00 > 0:34:01Can I give you a hand?
0:34:01 > 0:34:03Yeah, I'd be delighted, absolutely delighted.
0:34:03 > 0:34:05So where do you get your inspiration from?
0:34:05 > 0:34:08Well, I'm very influenced by Marlie Raphael,
0:34:08 > 0:34:10because I feel this is her garden, I'm custodian,
0:34:10 > 0:34:12not just of the house but the garden as well.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15I've got all her invoices,
0:34:15 > 0:34:18when she did her major planting right into the '60s and early '70s.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20They actually did plans for the planting.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22I've only got one of them, sadly -
0:34:22 > 0:34:24I don't know what happened to the other.
0:34:24 > 0:34:28- But talking about Marlie, wasn't she inspirational for the herbaceous border?- Absolutely.
0:34:28 > 0:34:29Yes, I think this was in...
0:34:29 > 0:34:32It was in full bloom and it was tended throughout the war years.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35I think it was the only bit of the garden which was as a garden,
0:34:35 > 0:34:37rather than producing fruit or vegetables.
0:34:37 > 0:34:39Well, there's bits to do, isn't there?
0:34:39 > 0:34:41- Yeah, there's a lot to do. - Come on, let's have a look.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44We haven't had the kindest summer, unfortunately.
0:34:44 > 0:34:46Well, there's quite a lot of dead-heading to be done here,
0:34:46 > 0:34:48- isn't there?- Yeah, sadly.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52It's just not as good as it should be,
0:34:52 > 0:34:55simply because it's been so dry these last few weeks.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58Well, you know, some years you get a long display, don't you,
0:34:58 > 0:35:00- and other years it's much shorter. - Yeah, absolutely.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03So what state was the garden in when you actually arrived here?
0:35:03 > 0:35:07The herbaceous border here essentially had four plants in it.
0:35:07 > 0:35:09So, a limited palette?
0:35:09 > 0:35:10A limited palette, absolutely.
0:35:10 > 0:35:12There were great losses here
0:35:12 > 0:35:15in the hard winter of, you know, '81, '82,
0:35:15 > 0:35:18and we sort of set about the restoration of the gardens
0:35:18 > 0:35:22to realising a little bit what Marlie Raphael had done
0:35:22 > 0:35:25and what we would like to go on doing.
0:35:25 > 0:35:30So we've taken quite a lot back into the garden and I'm still doing it.
0:35:30 > 0:35:32But what was Marlie like as a person?
0:35:32 > 0:35:35Well, I don't have any first-hand knowledge,
0:35:35 > 0:35:38because sadly I never knew her, although I grew up very close.
0:35:38 > 0:35:39My mother met her on a few occasions
0:35:39 > 0:35:42and said she was delightful and passionate about her garden.
0:35:42 > 0:35:45And she travelled a lot before the war, between the wars,
0:35:45 > 0:35:48but she didn't really travel nearly as much afterwards.
0:35:48 > 0:35:49I think it was, you know...
0:35:49 > 0:35:51She wanted to see what was happening here
0:35:51 > 0:35:53and have her finger on the pulse and she was....
0:35:53 > 0:35:55What's the overall plan for the garden?
0:35:55 > 0:35:57I think she had one
0:35:57 > 0:36:02where she wanted to plant the plants that she'd seen on her travels,
0:36:02 > 0:36:03and to have them.
0:36:04 > 0:36:06And have them she did.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09Further down, at the end of the border,
0:36:09 > 0:36:12an exotic Persian silk tree has just come into bloom.
0:36:16 > 0:36:20Marlie may have seen this tree on her travels around Asia,
0:36:20 > 0:36:23but it was first introduced into Europe in the mid-18th century
0:36:23 > 0:36:25by an Italian nobleman.
0:36:25 > 0:36:28In the wild, the tree tends to grow
0:36:28 > 0:36:30in dry plains, sandy valleys, and uplands.
0:36:30 > 0:36:35But it's planted as an ornamental feature in parks and gardens
0:36:35 > 0:36:38for its stunning foliage and silky pom-pom flowers.
0:36:40 > 0:36:42Its Persian name means "night sleeper",
0:36:42 > 0:36:45because the leaves slowly close during the night.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49To look this good, maybe you need a little beauty sleep.
0:36:51 > 0:36:52They say, the more you travel,
0:36:52 > 0:36:55the more you go and look at plants in the wild,
0:36:55 > 0:36:57the better informed and the more aware you are
0:36:57 > 0:37:00of the peculiarities that Mother Nature can throw up.
0:37:00 > 0:37:03And I think those early days of travel
0:37:03 > 0:37:05really set the palette and the tone
0:37:05 > 0:37:06for British horticulture.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09Because we had no reference point before then.
0:37:09 > 0:37:12I'm sure. She wanted a garden where you could walk at any time of year
0:37:12 > 0:37:14and you could find something of interest,
0:37:14 > 0:37:16and I think that's really important.
0:37:16 > 0:37:17But it's so easy to do, and people say,
0:37:17 > 0:37:20"How do you get 12 months' worth of colour?"
0:37:20 > 0:37:23You visit a garden centre one day every month
0:37:23 > 0:37:25and buy something in flower
0:37:25 > 0:37:27and you do it every month the same, for the year.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30And at the end of the year, you've got 12 months' worth of colour.
0:37:30 > 0:37:33I've never thought of that, but that's a really, really good idea.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36So what's going to happen to the garden in the long term?
0:37:36 > 0:37:38You know, do you have kids that are interested?
0:37:38 > 0:37:40I've got two, Elizabeth and Alexander.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43I have to say, they're teenagers and they're not really keen!
0:37:43 > 0:37:47They're not interested in the niceties of gardening,
0:37:47 > 0:37:48but they're very interested
0:37:48 > 0:37:51in the whole...vista.
0:37:51 > 0:37:54- OK.- So, bearing in mind what I was like at their age,
0:37:54 > 0:37:58you know, I think you've got to have that sort of opportunity
0:37:58 > 0:38:00and chance to grow into it.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Yeah, and you see, what's interesting about youngsters,
0:38:02 > 0:38:06is that often they don't actually say what's in there.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09And, you know, you hope that, as a gardener,
0:38:09 > 0:38:11you've sown a seed. And you probably have sown the seed,
0:38:11 > 0:38:14but it may lay dormant for a hell of a long time,
0:38:14 > 0:38:15and then one day it might bloom.
0:38:18 > 0:38:21Like gardening, the seeds of a good idea can grow anywhere,
0:38:21 > 0:38:25and 24 miles south-east of Kingston Bagpuize,
0:38:25 > 0:38:27on the calm waters at Henley-on-Thames,
0:38:27 > 0:38:29the idea of a boat race
0:38:29 > 0:38:32between the great universities of Oxford and Cambridge
0:38:32 > 0:38:34came to fruition in 1829.
0:38:34 > 0:38:38It eventually became the world's most famous regatta, Henley.
0:38:41 > 0:38:43Eloise Chapman is curator
0:38:43 > 0:38:46at the River and Rowing Museum on the riverbank.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50Henley's always benefited from the fact that
0:38:50 > 0:38:53it sits on a stretch of the river that's very navigable up to London,
0:38:53 > 0:38:57and with the introduction of locks during the 17th and 18th century,
0:38:57 > 0:38:59the amount of trade really increased
0:38:59 > 0:39:03and the size of vessels on the river really increased as well.
0:39:03 > 0:39:05During this time, there was an increasing interest
0:39:05 > 0:39:07in everything maritime,
0:39:07 > 0:39:09and this was due in no small part
0:39:09 > 0:39:11to Jerome K Jerome's book, Three Men In A Boat.
0:39:11 > 0:39:12And around this time,
0:39:12 > 0:39:15there was another travel book which came out, by John MacGregor,
0:39:15 > 0:39:17called A Thousand Miles In The Rob Roy Canoe,
0:39:17 > 0:39:21where he wrote about his adventures in his purpose-built canoe,
0:39:21 > 0:39:24and we have one of these first canoes, called a Rob Roy,
0:39:24 > 0:39:26that was built for him, in the museum.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31The first Oxford-Cambridge boat race took place here
0:39:31 > 0:39:35after two old school friends, who went on to opposing universities,
0:39:35 > 0:39:37were rowing together when they came up with a plan
0:39:37 > 0:39:39for an eight-oar race.
0:39:41 > 0:39:43They chose Henley-on-Thames
0:39:43 > 0:39:47because this stretch of the river was nice and straight.
0:39:48 > 0:39:51In the inaugural race, it was Oxford who won the day,
0:39:51 > 0:39:53and they have the winning boat in the museum.
0:39:53 > 0:39:56The boat is very different to the boats you have today.
0:39:56 > 0:39:57It's completely made of wood,
0:39:57 > 0:40:00it's incredibly large, incredibly heavy.
0:40:00 > 0:40:02It doesn't have outriggers for the oars
0:40:02 > 0:40:04and it also has static seats.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07So today you have a sliding seat, which makes rowing a lot easier,
0:40:07 > 0:40:09whereas these are completely static.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14The good people of Henley quickly realised
0:40:14 > 0:40:17that messing about on the river could be very lucrative,
0:40:17 > 0:40:22and the first regatta was established in 1839,
0:40:22 > 0:40:25eventually increasing from a one-day event
0:40:25 > 0:40:27to the five-day event it is now.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30But despite advancements in its duration,
0:40:30 > 0:40:33some rules weren't so progressive.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36Perhaps the most shocking rule
0:40:36 > 0:40:39was that no entrant was allowed to have undertaken
0:40:39 > 0:40:41any task that was considered menial,
0:40:41 > 0:40:44so nothing like a mechanic or an artisan,
0:40:44 > 0:40:46where they'd be working for a wage.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49The regatta was intended for amateur oarsmen
0:40:49 > 0:40:51and it enforced strict guidelines.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53But they didn't mention middle-class jobs
0:40:53 > 0:40:55like doctors, lawyers and accountants,
0:40:56 > 0:40:59So, in all but name, there was a class bar.
0:40:59 > 0:41:02The offending rule was dropped in 1937,
0:41:02 > 0:41:05but when it comes to sartorial tradition,
0:41:05 > 0:41:07some rules are holding fast.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11The regatta has quite a strict dress code,
0:41:11 > 0:41:14and for men this includes blazers or jackets and flannels,
0:41:14 > 0:41:18and blazers are quite a big part of rowing, and they came out of rowing.
0:41:18 > 0:41:21They were known as blazers because they were so bright.
0:41:21 > 0:41:23Women at the regatta are always expected to wear a dress,
0:41:23 > 0:41:25and the dress has to be below the knee,
0:41:25 > 0:41:27otherwise they will be told to leave.
0:41:31 > 0:41:35No need for dress codes back at Waterperry, thank heavens,
0:41:35 > 0:41:38although these island beds will have you wearing a smile.
0:41:40 > 0:41:41'Much of the garden we see today
0:41:41 > 0:41:43'was under the guardianship
0:41:43 > 0:41:46'of Miss Havergal's former pupil, Mary Spiller.
0:41:46 > 0:41:49'Mary was the first-ever presenter on Gardeners' World
0:41:49 > 0:41:53'and has cared for Waterperry for over 50 years.'
0:41:53 > 0:41:55Have a little pew.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58Oh, well, thank you very much, that's very nice.
0:41:58 > 0:41:59'To thank this modest woman,
0:41:59 > 0:42:02'I've asked local artist Rachel Ducker
0:42:02 > 0:42:05'to make one of her miniature wire sculptures.
0:42:05 > 0:42:07'It will sit in this particular part of the garden
0:42:07 > 0:42:11'that's filled with alpine plants Mary's particularly fond of.'
0:42:13 > 0:42:14What we thought would be nice
0:42:14 > 0:42:16is to leave something here
0:42:16 > 0:42:20to recognise the woman that really started it off,
0:42:20 > 0:42:22and what we did was asked a local artist,
0:42:22 > 0:42:24that equally loves Waterperry,
0:42:24 > 0:42:27to create a modern piece of art
0:42:27 > 0:42:30that would reflect Miss Havergal and the principles.
0:42:30 > 0:42:32And there we go.
0:42:36 > 0:42:39How lovely! And she's holding a strawberry.
0:42:39 > 0:42:40Absolutely.
0:42:40 > 0:42:42Delightful.
0:42:42 > 0:42:44So there we are, Miss Havergal with a strawberry.
0:42:44 > 0:42:47The excellence of the standards -
0:42:47 > 0:42:50you've got to have principles to produce a strawberry like that.
0:42:50 > 0:42:52Yes, she was quite a woman,
0:42:52 > 0:42:54quite a woman.
0:42:54 > 0:42:58'I wholeheartedly agree, Mary. She was quite a woman!'
0:43:04 > 0:43:06It's been so uplifting to see these Oxfordshire gardens
0:43:06 > 0:43:08from high in the sky,
0:43:08 > 0:43:11and to know that both the memory of the women who created them
0:43:11 > 0:43:12and the gardens themselves
0:43:12 > 0:43:15are safe in the hands of their new custodians.
0:43:18 > 0:43:19With that kind of protection,
0:43:19 > 0:43:23these young gardens might last as long as that ancient White Horse.