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Waterperry Gardens

Coordinates: 51°45′09″N 1°05′20″W / 51.7526°N 1.0888°W / 51.7526; -1.0888
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Waterperry Gardens
Museum at Waterperry Gardens

Waterperry Gardens are gardens with a museum in the village of Waterperry, near Wheatley, east of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England.[1][2]

Description

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Beatrix Havergal (1901–1980) established in 1932 the Waterperry School of Horticulture, a school of horticulture for ladies, that continued until her retirement in 1971.[3] The story of the Waterperry school is told in the book Waterperry: A Dream Fulfilled by Ursula Maddy.[4] The Waterperry estate provided Royal Sovereign strawberries to Buckingham Palace and the Chelsea Flower Show.[5]

In 1972, the School of Economic Science purchased the Waterperry Estate, including Waterperry Gardens, which it continues to run to generate revenue for the school.[6][7][8]

There are eight acres of landscaped ornamental gardens with an alpine garden, formal knot garden, herbaceous borders, riverside walk, rose garden, and water-lily canal.[9][10][11][12] There are also five acres of orchards,[13] and two collections of saxifrages which are accredited with Plant Heritage under the National Plant Collection scheme.[14][15]

The gardens are considered notable for the broad variety of snowdrops that grow in the spring.[16]

The Museum of Rural Life is housed in an 18th-century granary building, with displays of implements and tools.[17] Other facilities include a gallery, garden shop, gift shop, museum, plant centre, and tea shop.

The music video to the song "Yesterday" by artist Natalie Shay was filmed at Waterperry Gardens.[18]

Since 2017, the Waterperry Opera Festival has taken place in the grounds and the house. Over 4,000 patrons attended their 10-day festival in August 2022.

In 2023, the BBC programme Make it at Market used Waterperry Gardens as the backdrop to the second series.[19]

Notable alumnae

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Waterperry Gardens". TripAdvisor. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  2. ^ "Waterperry Garden, near Wheatley". Great British Gardens. UK. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  3. ^ "Waterperry Gardens". Gardenvisit.com. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  4. ^ Heidi Howcroft (5 March 2015). First Ladies of Gardening: Designers, Dreamers and Divas. ISBN 978-0711236431.
  5. ^ Oliver, Greg (2 October 1978). "Home of the Royal Berry". Coventry Evening Telegraph.
  6. ^ Hodgkinson, Brian. (2010). In search of truth : the story of the School of Economic Science. London: Shepheard-Walwyn. ISBN 9780856832765. OCLC 670184437.
  7. ^ Tolley, Dorine, 1947- (2009). De kracht van binnen : Leon MacLaren, een herinnering aan zijn leven en werken. Oyen, P.G. van (Paul Gabriël), 1944- (1e dr ed.). [Amsterdam]: Conversion Productions. ISBN 9789076392387. OCLC 520799536.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ "Obituary: Bernard Saunders, founder of Art in Action at Waterperry House". Oxford Mail. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  9. ^ Appleby, Matthew. "Cambridge University discover Saxifraga silver-white crust secret". www.hortweek.com. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  10. ^ Petherick, Tom (23 March 2015). "It's a myth that alpine plants are difficult to grow". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  11. ^ Fowler, Alys (14 April 2018). "The UK's best gardens to visit this spring". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  12. ^ Thame, Rachel de (30 April 2017). "Rachel de Thame tutorial: supporting plants". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  13. ^ "Celebrating our core values at Apple Day". Oxford Mail. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
  14. ^ "Saxifraga sect. Ligulatae". Plant Heritage. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  15. ^ "Saxifraga sect. Porphyrion". Plant Heritage. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  16. ^ "Snowdrops in the Cotswolds: 9 of the most magical places to go". Cotswold Life. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
  17. ^ "Waterperry Gardens". Experience Oxfordshire. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  18. ^ Fenney, James (24 January 2019). "Interview: Natalie Shay". Belwood Music. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  19. ^ "Make It at Market returns to BBC One". Televisual. 6 November 2023.
  20. ^ Janet Watts (30 October 2006). "Obituary: Valerie Finnis". The Guardian.
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51°45′09″N 1°05′20″W / 51.7526°N 1.0888°W / 51.7526; -1.0888