/OKI 7. 1913. 
THE GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE. 
413 
^ vvvvvvvvvv.. 
I SANSAW, NEAR SHREWSBURY. I 
Among the many thousands who annually 
viflft the great horticultural exhibition held 
at Shrewsbury during the month of August, 
not a few travel to the county town of 
Shropshire over the line running thenoe 
from Crewe and Chester. If keen on gar¬ 
dening matters, and not wholly absorbed 
in the exhibition, they must have noticed 
an interesting garden quite near the rail¬ 
way, not far from Yorton. For many years 
I had wondered who owned this garden, 
with its fine trees, wide lawns, its rising 
ground, as well as its pools of water, and 
the peaceful quietness that seemed to reign 
over all. My curiosity led me to make 
inquiries of Mr. J. Ekjkford, when at Wem, 
strikingly attractive features that show 
how great has been the care bestowed upon 
trees. Erect Irish yews are in fine con¬ 
dition, and there are a number of speci¬ 
mens towards the margins of tihe lawn. 
Lilacs, too, are capital, and a good collec¬ 
tion of varieties has been planted in the 
wide border that separates the garden 
proper from the meadow land beyond. 
Hardy flowers abound, but in only a 
few instances are these planted in straiglht 
borders. Shrubberies have been cleared, 
or severely thinned out, leaving only a suit¬ 
able background for the herbaceous plants; 
a widening of the borders, thorough trench¬ 
ing, and the provision of a winding front 
against walls, and up larch poles, and at 
the time of my visit a particularly good 
form of C. Jackmanni was smothering a 
low wire fence at the end of a border with 
its fine violet-purple flowers. C. Marcel 
Moser was good, and so, too, were Coun¬ 
tess of Onslow, the violet-purple Coccinea 
hybrid, the soft lavender Queen Alexandra, 
and C. viticella Kermesina. Clematises are 
so beautiful that they deserve wider cul¬ 
tivation, especially in gardens where they 
do well. 
In the lower part of the gardens, near 
the railway, there is a considerable area 
of water, with a goodly island furnished 
with fine old oaks, planes, chestnuts, ash, 
elms, etc., wdth a marginal planting of 
shrubs, and spring-flowering bulbs between. 
A little way from the water a new rose 
garden has been made, and leading varie¬ 
ties planted. Every type of rose is repre¬ 
sent^, and there are arches and pillars 
for the ramblers and strong growers, as 
well as beds and borders for the dw’arfs 
and standards. To separate the rose gar- 
SANSAW, NEAE SHEEWSBURY, THE RESIDENCE OF F. BIBBY. ESQ. 
and he promptly satisfied my inquiaitivenes. 
y driving me over the same evening, 
verv gardens possess th( 
8itua+.<v name of Sansaw, and arc 
Thev^r of Clive, near Yorton 
ev« who, how. 
woLr cT Hardwicke Grange 
*6 Mr. Knowlls 
of Mr Sansaw, is an old pupi 
conseaiiPn+1^^ Madresfield Court, and 
^ell^ a ^ keen fruit grower sa 
San^o all-round man. 
den The gar 
Panyinc accom- 
in the Mme prominently 
planted in - abundantly 
deed rosp?entrance ; in 
i^onghout been freely plantec 
ders, and fr * in beds and bor- 
or along pillars, over arches 
nnoomnionlxr they flowei 
eroun^ ^^^^dendrons are effec 
bereabouts ”?ar the entrance, an<3 
®^noia gigant^p^*^^^ beeches, a splendic 
gigantea, and fine deodars are 
line, have permitted the free grouping of 
all the best hardy flowers in an informal 
manner. Herbaceous plants never seem so 
much at home as when they have a back¬ 
ground of trees or shrubs, and a frontage 
of well-kept lawn. The one great diffi¬ 
culty is lest the trees and shrubs rob the 
plants of their needful food, but this can 
be overcome. At any rate, it is overcome 
at Sansaw, for phloxes are as near per¬ 
fection as may be, and they are always a 
good indication of the cultural methods 
followed. They were splendid in August, 
and so were gaillardias, phlomis, rud- 
beckias, especially the tall double form of 
R. laciniata, Galtonia candicans, asters, 
and zinnias. Annual flowers are freely 
used in the large borders, as well as in 
the straight borders just outside the 
kitchen garden walls, and they are so 
managed that they yield their beauty just 
when the first great flush of summer flowers 
has passed. 
Clematises are very fine at Sansaw, and 
as they do well here they have been freely 
planted. They are growing on fences, 
den from a little nursery garden, w^here 
bright-hued shrubs, etc., were being grown 
for future planting, a thin belt of trees 
had been formed, but to prevent any ap¬ 
pearance of bareness Mr. Knowles had 
made free use of two quite common sub¬ 
jects, and had produced a really fine effect 
with them. These were giant sunflowers 
and the variegated maize. In the fairly stiff 
and rather moist soil these had grown amaz¬ 
ingly, and the sunflowers, in several varie¬ 
ties, towered above the maize and the 
shrubs, and their great golden flower heads 
made a brilliant scene that was most effec¬ 
tive when viewed from a little distance 
along the water-side. 
Sansaw differs from most gardens of any 
note in that it possesses no rock garden. 
However, it does not lack alpine flowers, 
especially those that flower early in the 
year, an^ these are grown in rockery banks 
near Mr. Knowles’ pretty half-timbere<l 
house, but on the opposite side to that 
illustrated. In this view, the entrance to 
the little borne farm is shown, with a quite 
considerable hill rising in the background. 
