This week, take your brolly and your wellies and follow the yellow signs to these gorgeous Pembrokeshire gardens to while away the afternoon in a magical world (writes Josephine Hammond). They offer beautiful tranquil settings and some fascinating plants as well as some unusual and striking sculptures. As if we needed any more, both gardens incorporate some beautiful water areas. Sunday, August 5, 1-6 pm Dyffryn Fernant (The Valley By The Stream): Working literally 'from scratch', clearing brambles as thick as a man's wrist, as well as blackthorn, Japanese knotweed and ground elder, Christina Shand has turned six acres of land into a garden paradise. In the lee of the Dinas Mountains, Christina's ethos has been to have a garden 'without bounds'. Her garden blends into the dramatic landscape without definition but contains its own defined areas. The garden flows from one area to another, from the quarry parking area with mainly trees and roses, to the kitchen garden, courtyard, orchard, bog garden, nursery, fernery, pond and woodland plantations - 18 in all. These are explained in Christina's delightful write- up with map. She voices what all garden lovers must feel at some time, 'I love it, I run after it, I despair of it and I care for it!' The garden has recently been featured in The English Garden and also in Country Homes and Interiors, including the following line: 'The just -tamed meets the decidedly wild with ever a touch of the tropics.' Christina is an artist, horticulture is her medium and her garden folds itself round you in a vast embrace. It is open on Sundays fortnightly until the end of September and on Sunday, August 5, especially for the National Garden Scheme from 10 am - 5 pm. There are some plant sales too. The garden can be found three miles east of Fishguard on the A487. Admission £3, children free. Wednesday, August 8, 12 noon-5 pm, Dyffryn Farm, near Narberth: A delightful relaxed garden bordered by a small river and specialising in bamboos and bog plants. The garden slopes naturally up from the river to grassy banks with native plants. Dyffryn Farm is set in a secluded valley which supplies a verdant rural background. Visitors can stroll around the various areas of the garden and enjoy home-made cakes and tea in a tranquil setting. Plants are also available for sale. The garden is three miles east of Narberth. From junction of A40 and A478, follow signs for the crematorium. Go through Llanmill and up the hill. Turn left at the crossroads, after half-a-mile, Dyffryn Farm is on the right by the railway bridge. Admission £2.50, children free. So now is the time to go out and enjoy all these lovely gardens, happy in the knowledge that you are also helping to raise money for some very worthy causes. Further details of these garden openings are also available in the NGS leaflets in all Tourist Information Centres.
