Herbs at Downside

So many uses – what’s your favourite other than for cooking?   Planted together in larger containers make for a delightful ‘arrangement’.  I discovered celery leaf last year which is just brilliant.

Another idea which has stayed with me for a long time was when visiting La Mortella, the gardens of Lady Walton on the island of Ischia some years back when my husband and I were being ‘groupies’ when our daughter was a member of the Wiltshire and Swindon Youth Orchestra on a tour to Italy and giving a concert in her open air theatre overlooking the Bay of Naples.    The whole evening was magical, but it is the fragrance of the thyme and other herbs Lady Walton had planted under the seating of the auditorium.  So clever and such a lovely experience.  Here’s the link to the gardens

“La Mortella is the spectacular subtropical and Mediterranean garden developed since 1956 by the late Susana Walton, Argentinian wife of the British composer Sir William Walton. It is near Forio, a village in the Island Ischia, in the bay of Naples. It can be visited from April through October. Designed by landscape architect Russell Page, La Mortella is acclaimed as one of the most beautiful private gardens of Italy.”