The Walled Garden At Chevening Including Potting Range

The Walled Garden at Chevening, including the Potting Range, is a double walled garden dating from around 1775, supervised by Grizel, the wife of the 2nd Earl Stanhope. This garden is possibly unique in England due to its hexagonal shape, which is doubled on four sides to maximize the use of the south-facing walls, enclosing an area of 8 acres. It is constructed of red brick in English bond with a tiled coping that includes a curved central tile and two wedge-shaped tiles to divert water from the wall. The garden features a brick plinth and consists of about 46 courses.

The four sides of the central hexagon have square brick piers with round-headed arches, while the north and south sections include plain pilasters with blocked entrances. The outer wall also has similar central brick piers with round-headed arches, but the entrances on the north and southwest sides are blocked. Attached to the west side is an early to mid-19th century brick potting range with a renewed tiled roof. It is believed that Lady Grizel Hamilton, whose mother was Scottish, may have used one or two similar walled gardens in Scotland as models. Accounts from 1776 indicate that the brickwork for the kitchen garden walls cost £102, and the garden is depicted on the estate map of 1775.