It has been a busy week for me visiting National Trust gardens; the humans should have been on holiday but ended up having to holiday from home and visit some fairly local places.  The first thing I noticed at Barrington Court was a sign saying only one gardener had been looking after the grounds during the ‘lockdown’ period. 

Everything looked fine to me but the grass was quite long in the orchard.

I was  very keen to see the gardens…

For a few minutes I had to shelter from the rain.

There were lots of marigolds in the kitchen garden; marigolds attract insects that eat aphids so I presume that is why they were there.

Cherries; yum yum yum!

Some of the flowers in the kitchen garden were probably being grown to cut and put in flower arrangements such as the Sweet William here.

I was very impressed with the pears being grown against the wall.

There were normal pear trees too; I think these will be delicious at the end of summer.

I was very careful not to fall into the pond.

A rather wild looking scarecrow was busy keeping birds away.

There was also a very busy gardener working very hard in The White Garden.

I liked this splendid path so much I just had to sit and look at it for a while.

The bees on the flowers are also fascinating to watch…

On leaving the gardens we discovered Strode House, which was built in the 17th Century as a stable block. It now contains a holiday apartment which must be a lovely place to stay.

I spent a while looking at the garden.

Here I am in front of the Tudor House, Barrington Court. It was one of the first large houses that the National Trust acquired.

I didn’t get too close to the moat.

While exploring the woods it was good to find that honey bee hives were nearby.

I kept well away from the hives. Bees are best left alone to make their honey.

There was a very strange multi-faceted sundial with a lion sat on top on the lawn in front of the house.

After all the exploring I was quite hungry. I had a very peaceful lunch sat on the lawn outside the shop (which is closed at the moment).

Barrington Court is well worth visiting especially if you like gardens with beautiful paths. I hope to go again sometime.

For more information see: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/barrington-court

Horace the Alresford Bear 18/6/2020