MIDWINTER MAGIC Beautiful planting and decorations bring seasonal charm to an impressive two-acre garden

MIDWINTER MAGIC

Natural decorations and beautiful seasonal plants add festive charm in and around this inspirational garden

Gardener Kate Halls (right) oversees the two-acre plot at Woodhill Manor in the Surrey Hills. Topiary shrubs and the box parterre bring a formality and structure that contrasts beautifully with the vibrant winter beds

When the owners of Woodhill Manor opened their Christmas presents a couple of years ago, there was one that stood out: a photobook with a series of stunning images charting the seasons of their much-loved garden deep in the Surrey Hills. The book was the work of their gardener Kate Halls, an avid Instagrammer, who had simply used the camera on her phone to capture life in the garden throughout the previous 12 months. It made a wonderful memento, but the gorgeous photos were also testament to Kate ’ s skill for ‘ styling ’ a garden – a talent that’ s evident each year during the Christmas festivities.

SEASONAL CELEBRATIONS

‘Christmas is huge at Woodhill, ’ says Kate.

‘The owners absolutely love it and it takes up a big part of our time running into December. ’ Preparations begin early. Hazel and willow stems are collected for weeks, along with cones from the fir and larch trees, and stacked in baskets ready for fashioning into natural decorations such as wreaths and stars to hang inside the house and around the garden.

Kate recommends using old watering cans and gardenalia such as vintage garden sieves for making arrangements of fir branches and twigs, along with winter-flowering violas, snowdrops and hellebores. For the house, she forces hyacinth bulbs and ‘Paperwhite ’ and ‘Bridal

Crown ’ narcissi in generous bowls and baskets. Closer to Christmas itself, mistletoe is harvested from two magnificent poplar trees and brought indoors to create a ‘ chandelier ’ over the staircase, while smaller bunches are hung from archways outside.

At the top of the garden sits The Gardeners ’ Retreat, a charming weatherboarded cabin with a wooden veranda and tiled roof that houses Kate ’ s desk, tools and books. Even this space gets its own festive makeover – fir branches are festooned with tiny lights, while miniature Christmas trees are dressed with cinnamon sticks, dried orange slices and stars cut from birch bark.

Family and friends usually gather at Woodhill for Christmas, so time is spent making the approach to the house look magical, with hundreds of lights woven into the trees and shrubs along the driveway.

WINTER COLOUR

Kate has been gardening at Woodhill for 17 years and cherishes the two-acre plot as if it were her own. Winter reveals the bones of the garden, and the formal structure that has been designed into

parterres – one set in gravel and the other in lawn – sit alongside beds of mixed shrubbery, crossed by paved stone paths so it’ s easy to explore and enjoy in wet weather while feet remain dry.

‘There are benches tucked in there, in sheltered spots, and we ’ ve included lots of sweet box Sarcococca confusa and winter-flowering honeysuckle, along with Viburnum x bodnantense ‘Dawn ’ and witch hazel for unexpected scent, ’ says Kate.

It’ s important for these beds to look good from the windows too, so there is bright colour from Cornus ‘Midwinter Fire ’ and ‘Sibirica ’ , and evergreen shrubs such as Leucothoe ‘Scarletta ’ and ‘Curly Red’ , which take on vibrant hues in the colder months.

LOOKING FORWARD

The pace may slow in winter, but there are still plenty of jobs for Kate and her team to get on with, including pruning the wisteria on the pergola and the grapevine outside the greenhouse.

In the greenhouse, seed sowing begins in January as the annuals for the cutting-garden beds, herbaceous borders and various pots go into countless trays. Kate keeps a collection of succulents here, many of which were amassed by her late father Dennis. Now, they are proudly displayed in terracotta bowls and pots on tiered shelves, and offer something to admire whatever the weather or season.

The winter months bring a chance to take a breath and reflect on all that has been achieved in the garden during the year, but there is still plenty to forage for seasonal displays, posies and collages, including pretty snowdrops and glorious hellebores.

‘Don ’t find yourself staring out at bare earth at this time of year, ’ says Kate. ‘There is so much winter interest you can enjoy. ’ HB

Find Kate on Instagram at @katesinthegarden

5 TIPS FOR WINTER GARDENING

1 CHOOSE FRAGRANT SHRUBS Try sweet box Sarcococca confusa, winter honeysuckle Lonicera fragrantissima, wintersweet Chimonanthus praecox ‘Luteus’ and Daphne odora. 2 INCLUDE CLIMBERS Evergreen Clematis cirrhosa var. purpurascens ‘Freckles’ and Clematis urophylla ‘Winter Beauty’ are both favourites at Woodhill. 3 USE WITCH HAZELS Explore different hues: Woodhill has bright yellow Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold Promise’ (right), rich orange ‘Jelena’ and copper-red ‘Diane’ . 4 DECORATE POTS Plant containers of spring bulbs and add cut lengths of vibrant cornus or willow to add height and interest over winter. 5 CREATE A DISPLAY OF EARLY BULBS Place pots of Iris reticulata, snowdrops and narcissi on outdoor tables – their emerging tips herald the arrival of spring.

‘Don ’t find yourself staring at BARE EARTH. There is so much WINTER INTEREST you can enjoy

SEASONAL SCENES

Opposite Kate and her team are busy at this time of year, foraging for branches, cones and twigs to create natural decorations for using indoors and out This page Paths have been woven through the beds to encourage exploration even on winter days