Here's a look at some of what you'll find inside.
The year of the tree
This year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show is poised to celebrate the unfolding freshness and energy of deciduous woods in May, as Kathryn Bradley-Hole discovers
Beneath the boughs
Garden designer Tom Stuart-Smith is returning to Chelsea’s Main Avenue for the first time in 14 years for the National Garden Scheme, reveals Joanna Fortnam
‘When the ass begins to bray, surely rain will come that day’
It’s raining ancient folklore and proverbs as John Lewis-Stempel relies on jumping trout, croaking frogs and chirping crickets to predict the great British weather
My art is in the garden
Carla Passino examines how the brushstrokes of Monet, Turner, Klimt and Canaletto are providing colour and inspiration at Chelsea
All I need is the air that I breathe
Cathryn Spence airs the story of how—250 years ago—Joseph Priestley ‘discovered’ oxygen at Bowood House in Wiltshire
Cindy Sughrue’s favourite painting
The director of London’s Charles Dickens Museum picks a classic snapshot of the capital’s skyline
The legacy
Bess of Hardwick was the first of many influential Chatsworth women, as Kate Green learns
A timeless view
George Plumptre admires the simple beauty of the gardens at Pusey House in Oxfordshire
Seating plans
What makes a comfortable garden seat, asks Tiffany Daneff
Sitting pretty
Amelia Thorpe seeks out crafted benches to suit every garden
The cutting-garden diaries
In the final part of her series, Anna Brown is focused on harvesting
A lily among weeds
Clive Aslet lauds the enduring influence of the prolific Victorian architect George Edmund Street
Slugging it out
Marianne Taylor is captivated by the curious beauty of molluscs
Mane stay
Deborah Nash visits the last British firm creating horsehair fabric
Out and About
The Royal Countryside Fund reception at Fortnum & Mason
Interiors
Amelia Thorpe takes a look at six of the best WOW!house creations
A brush with sparkles
Hetty Lintell is wowed by jewels celebrating the National Gallery
Kitchen garden cook
The arrival of new-season carrots is applauded by Melanie Johnson
Native herbs
John Wright is playing with fire as he investigates horseradish
Sweet chamomile, good times never seemed so good
Deborah Nicholls-Lee dreams of dainty white flowers and a fragrant lawn that never needs mowing
Falstaff reimagined
Sir Ian McKellen lends a ‘silvering dignity’ to Shakespeare’s famed roisterer, finds Michael Billington
And much more
-
The Country Life guide to Somerset: What to do, where to stay and how to eatSomerset is rich in natural beauty and history, but it is its wealth of small-scale food and drink producers, farmers and makers that really set it apart from the competition. Find out how to make the most of it all with our indispensable guide.
-
How to make a gloomy city garden into a haven of colour and natureTiffany Daneff discovers how to transform a typically dark London back garden into a light-filled green haven that is always in use. Photographs by Clive Nichols.
