Gardens of the Late 17th Century
6 part Garden History series looking at Charles II reign when French ideas were particularly influential and were adopted in royal gardens and those of courtiers and country gentlemen as well. William of Orange as William III emulated at Hampton Court the gardens of his great enemy Louis XIV but also brought in gardeners from the Netherlands with knowledge of exotic or ‘outlandish’ plants from all over the known world. Botanic gardens like the ones in Leiden, Amsterdam, Paris, and Oxford made systematic studies of these plants and described their care. Publications on plants and gardens, mostly translated from French and Dutch, ranged from expensive volumes with beautiful engravings to more practical gardening manuals. Evelyn, one of the most prolific of the English writers of the time and a founder of the Royal Society, sought to raise the status of gardening to an art form and we are told that ‘to him is owing that gardening can speak proper English’. With Sally Jeffery, Jill Francis & David Marsh
Thursday mornings 10:00 BST 6 May-10 June
@thegardenstrust
