Gertrude Jekyll's lost garden The restoration of an Edwardian masterpiece

In 1983, when Wallinger and her husband purchased Upton Grey, a turn-of-the-century manor house in Hampshire, she had no idea that she was about to embark on a new passion that would consume her life. While researching the history of the house, built by Charles Holme, a leading Arts and Crafts figure of his day, she made the exciting discovery that the overgrown garden was designed by Gertrude Jekyll. Wallinger had very little interest in gardening before she moved to Upton Grey, but she had the sense to recognize Jekyll's importance, and she was determined to restore the garden to its original design. Tracking down Jekyll's original plans, which were housed at the University of California at Berkeley, she began the long and arduous task of deciphering the plans, locating plants (many of which were extremely hard to find), and tackling the physical demands of restoring the garden. She documented her progress with photographs (the before and after shots are remarkable) and a journal. Her account of the mistakes she made along the way as well as exciting discoveries and her increasing appreciation of Jekyll's legacy make fascinating reading. Sixteen years later, Upton Grey stands as the only fully restored Jekyll garden. This beautiful book will inspire any gardener and is essential for all gardening collections.DPhillip Oliver, Univ. of North Alabama Lib., Florence (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.