2026 marks the 400th anniversary of the death of Sir Francis Bacon, one of history’s greatest philosophers, scientists, and statesmen. As his home and final resting place, St Albans will be the focal point for Bacon400 global commemorations, featuring a wide programme of lectures, exhibitions, and community activities that celebrate his enduring legacy.
Join us for an unmissable evening in The Apple House, with architectural and garden historian and award-winning author Paula Henderson as she celebrates Sir Francis Bacon’s passion for and expertise on plants. An evening which will appeal to gardeners, garden designers, history lovers and anyone with a passion for plants and gardens.
More information about the talk
Francis Bacon was a prolific writer but nothing he wrote has had the lasting impact as ‘Of gardens’, published in his final collection of essays in 1625. The essay begins with the often-quoted sentences, ‘God Almighty first planted a Garden.And indeed it is the purest of human pleasures’.Bacon’s essay is not only a model for the ‘princely garden’ but it is of enormous importance for the detailed description he gives of the design of the garden and, even more significantly, of the plants that he would include for a ver perpetuum, a garden full of ‘things of beautie’ throughout the year.
In his garden, Bacon includes both native plants and ‘strangers’ or exotics.He considers how the garden would look all times of year, including the winter months.Alongside the visual beauty of the plants, he is concerned with their other sensuous qualities, especially what he calls the ‘breath of flowers’.
Although many herbals and garden books had been published previously, Bacon’s essay is the most personal and most detailed of any descriptions of how plants would be used in a garden. His more empirical approach, combined with his love of plants, is what sets him apart and what would have the greatest impact on later garden writers.
Tickets include entry to the talk, a drink and Tom Stuart-Smith’s Plant Library of over 2000 perennials and bulbs.
Profits from this workshop go to fund the work of our not-for-profit, The Serge Hill Project for Gardening Creativity and Health, which provides therapeutic and educational programmes to local schools, charities and community groups most in need.
About Paula Henderson
Paula Henderson is an independent architectural and garden historian with a Ph.D. from the Courtauld Institute of Art.She lectures widely in Britain and in the United States and has published over seventy articles on English houses and their settings, including articles on the gardens of Sir Francis Bacon and his essay, ‘Of Gardens’. Her book, The Tudor House and Garden: architecture and landscape in the 16th and early 17th centuries (The Paul Mellon Centre and Yale University Press), won the Berger Prize for the outstanding contribution to the history of British art, 2005.She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and is currently completing a book on the gardens of Tudor and early Stuart London.
Information For Visitors
Accessibility
Accessible parking for those who require it is available at the entry to The Apple House. There is step-free access to the building and all areas. However, there are many potential trip hazards and uneven surfaces that may be encountered whilst visiting the gardens, along with gravel paths that aren’t suitable for walking frames with wheels. Please be aware that due to the ongoing building works around the Apple House, there may be additional hazards to look out for.
Further Information
With the exception of registered support dogs, no dogs are permitted in the gardens.
Please note that this is a no smoking, no vaping site.