Hospice open gardens

But though Stanley was wearing his "Under-gardener" t-shirt and Pauline was busy explaining her planting scheme to visitors, the photograph depicted neither householder.

The same individual responsible for the freshly-dug bed had dug the holes in the lawn.

"We have a badger problem..." Stanley explained.

But the unwanted extra pair of hands (paws) did not detract from the beauty of a garden which, like Old Town's other three which were open on Tuesday in aid of St Michael's Hospice, drew large number of visitors.

The nearest parking the Observer could find was half way down Manor Road - and that on what the Irish would call a "soft day," meaning a light rain trickling down the back of the neck.

The earliest references to Forge House are in the early 18th Century. When Pauline and Stanley moved in 26 years ago one of their first tasks was to remove concrete and other rubble from the garden.

Today, five steps lead from the lower section to the upper. Pauline says: "We have lots of daffodils in Spring. It's nice because you look up to them from the lounge."

Horse Chestnut trees in neighbouring Linkwell, form the back-drop to the garden. Pauline says: "With all these trees we decided to make it a woodland garden - wildish."

Stanley says: "We decided to make use of the old walls and encourage ivy down them."

The hill-top garden suffers from thin soil which drains quickly despite all that the pair have done to enrich it.

Even so, visitors delighted at everything from peony to azaleas.

The backdrop to Lolesworth, in Short Lane, is very different. The ancient parish church towers over property built in the immediate pre-war era.

Jackie and Alex Thomson bought Lolesworth in 1993.

Jackie says: "I have changed the back garden. I have made the borders curved rather than straight. The two ponds were not as they are now. We have put the summerhouse in the corner and re-built the garage to match the house."

Like Forge House, Lolesworth suffers from swift-drying soil. Jackie says: "I like flowers more than shrubs but we will be looking to put in more Mediterranean plants."

Rhubarb and broad beans, rosemary and brassicas are thriving in the part-hidden kitchen garden.

At the front, Lolesworth has the country cottage look, thanks to roses and wisteria around the front door.

It had been sympathetically planted before the Thomsons arrived, with a succession of seasonal colour from primrose yellow through blues and then red to the Golden Rod of autumn.

Jackie says: "The front is much more as it was - someone knew what they were doing."

Visitors on Tuesday quickly realised that Jackie knows what she is doing. Apple blossom at the back of the house, azaleas and other delights at the front - and everywhere on Tuesday the click of camera shutters. Even if it was in the rain...