Lynda Swenson and I visited several gardens as part of the Garden Conservancy Open Days. Eleanor Briggs’ garden in Hancock, NH was our last stop. The most striking feature of this venue was a forty-eight foot koi pond complete with koi and a resident frog. It was designed by landscape architect Diane McGuire and planted with lotus and water lilies.

Unusual architecture

Eleanor Briggs owns a farmhouse built in 1776 by the town clerk, Jonathan Bennett. i noticed some unusual brickwork on the chimney, visible between the large smoke trees.

However the most striking architecture was an AIA-award-winning screened porch was designed by Dan Scully.

Trellis

I liked the way the trellises were used on the farmhouse.

Vegetable Garden

There was a large productive vegetable garden which was very neat and tidy.

Mass Planting

One way to fill in an area is to use “ditch lilies” the ubiquitous Hemerocallis fulva. This mound was just coming into bloom.

This was the end of our garden touring. Lynda was an accomplished gardener. She had a great eye for design and her garden was a delight. I’m pretty good at getting plants to grow but it all very unkempt. Seeing these gardens is inspirational but I keep wondering if they have a team of workers to keep it in check.