How do gardens get their names?

aineo369 · November 2020

How did Longmeadow get its name? Was it already named when Monty bought it, or did Monty name it himself? What about other homes/gardens in England? How do they get their names? Is there a tradition of naming homes and gardens?

Posy · November 2020

I imagine it is part geography, part family and part owners' imagination and taste. The grand gardens often bear names to do with place, Kew, Bodnant, while some will be associated with history and family. I believe Monty's garden was called Longmeadow for the TV programme and has another name altogether.

Buttercupdays · November 2020

In rural areas, farms and individual houses were given names for identification purposes. The fields round here are criss-crossed by old stone postmens' paths and the stone walls had steps built in for the postmen and farmers to climb over. The farm names go back a long way - ours can be traced to the time of Charles 2nd - and are based on local features, the brook, the hill where it sits or the weather to be expected. The Ordnance Survey map will yield names like Windyway Head and Whitehills, which give a good idea of what Victorian postmen had to endure on their journeys.

Farmers would also name their fields, for ease of reference. Ours are named prosaically Top field and Bottom field, along with Small sheep field and Five Trees.

As our garden is over an acre it is also divided into workable areas with differing characteristics, just like Monty's. Ours include Daffodil meadow, Pond meadow, Dam Bank, the Dell and the Wally Garden, named after the simpering statue in the middle!

In more urban areas all houses are identified by street names and numbers, but many people like to give their house a name with more personal significance as well.

Fairygirl · November 2020

If you mean the gardens of 'stately homes' and historic buildings, it's the building that has the name, not the garden.

AnniD · November 2020

I do remember reading that the prefix "Tre" in Cornish estate names such as Trebah and Trelissick means "Homestead".
Can't say l'm very keen on "The Newt" for what used to be known as Hadspen . I think that meant "on a hill", but l'm not sure. The new name was given because there were newts found on the site when it was redeveloped.

Dovefromabove · November 2020

Adrian Bloom’s Foggy Bottom is self explanatory ... situated among the picturesque low- lying water meadows of the Norfolk-Suffolk border ... adjacent, his father’s gardens have more prosaic names
https://www.thebressinghamgardens.com/the-gardens/

BenCotto · November 2020

Barnsdale, Geoff Hamilton’s garden, is a corruption of St Bernard’s Hill which was a deer hunting park created in the 13th century. Much of the former parkland was drowned when Rutland Water was created.

There is, and was, no village or parish named Barnsdale. Instead, besides the gardens, there are two hotels which use the name and a Rutland Water car park.

aineo369 · November 2020

Thank you all for your responses. They are very helpful.

Papi Jo · November 2020

About the topic at hand, thought I'd mention this interesting article on the "Garden Rant" website here: Is Naming Your Garden Pretentious?

BenCotto · November 2020

Last summer I visited a local town’s open gardens day and was amused that one of the gardens had a wrought iron sign prominently displayed saying ‘garden’. I suppose it stopped them trying to plant roses in the garage.

Similarly, what’s the point of kitchen jars labelled ‘Spoons’, or similar? Do people otherwise forget what they’re called?

Biglad · November 2020

I'm going to name my garden The Great Dismal Swamp

How do gardens get their names?

Posts