A garden that holds you

Andrew describes Pelham as a garden with a particular quality that’s hard to put into words but immediately felt. “If I were to get married again, I think I’d choose Pelham,” he says. “There’s something about it. It offers a sense of being enclosed, held within walls. I didn’t want to be hidden away, but I wanted to feel contained in a space, almost protected. Pelham has exactly that quality.”

That feeling is something couples tell us they notice too. Just recently, a group of guests stepped outside during a wedding and described walking through the back garden doors and simply stopping in their tracks. That reaction, Andrew tells us, never gets old.

Georgian character, gently worn

Pelham House is a Georgian building, and the garden reflects that. Andrew loves Georgian architecture because of its formality and sense of proportion. However, Pelham sits in Lewes, a town with its own distinct character and coastal looseness. The garden walks that line: structured enough to feel considered, relaxed enough to feel welcoming.

“The garden has to have a meaningful connection to the building it belongs to,” Andrew explains. “There’s no sense in placing something that doesn’t sit right. You can introduce contemporary elements, but there must always be a nod to the place’s tradition.” At Pelham, that means planting that feels timeless, incorporating pinks, purples, and whites that are soft, romantic and entirely suited to the mood of a celebration.

Something beautiful, whatever the season

One of the questions we’re asked most often is: will the garden look good on my wedding day? It’s a completely understandable thing to want to know, and the answer is always “yes”. That being said, every month is different in the garden, and that’s exactly the point.

Late spring is Andrew’s favourite time, and it’s easy to see why. May and June bring the garden fully alive with salvias, foxgloves, and gaura with its lovely lightness. “There’s something almost seductive about those high-summer flowers,” he says. “They draw you in completely.”

But a winter wedding at Pelham has its own kind of magic. Andrew’s approach in the colder months is one he describes as “illusion”. He creates pockets of seasonal interest that guide your eye towards exactly what he wants you to see. His winter heroes are hellebores, the Christmas rose, which bring extraordinary colour and elegance even against the darkest January day.

Whatever month you’re marrying, Andrew will have been planning for it. That’s not something that happens by chance; it’s the result of weekly visits, seasonal thinking, and a genuine refusal to let the garden have an off day.

A word on wisteria

Pelham’s wisteria is one of the things couples fall in love with. It’s a truly beautiful plant, and when it’s in full bloom, it’s breathtaking. But Andrew is honest about something worth knowing: the climate is changing, and with it, the timing of things like wisteria.

This year it flowered in April, almost three weeks ahead of schedule. It’s difficult to plan for in advance, which is something we’d rather be upfront about than leave to chance.

What we can promise is that there will always be something of colour, something of beauty, something that stops your guests in their tracks. The specifics may shift with the seasons, but that commitment never does.

Something new is coming

Andrew is currently working on something he’s genuinely excited about: a secret garden at Pelham, designed exclusively for the wedding couple. It’s still taking shape and won’t be ready this year, but the vision is a private space that feels entirely your own. Somewhere to slip away to, to take photographs, to have a moment together amid the day.

“Photography is always at the front of my mind when I’m designing for venues,” Andrew explains. “I’m always thinking about where the photographs will happen, what the backdrops will look like, and how to create moments that feel fresh.” The secret garden is being designed to offer something no other part of the grounds can.

Caring for the garden and the environment

Sustainability runs through Andrew’s approach to the Pelham grounds in a very practical, hands-on way. He has several compost bays on the go here, and that goes straight back into the ground each autumn. Leftover materials from other projects come to Pelham rather than going to waste. The structure he’s currently building uses slates reclaimed from his own roof, set into gabions backfilled with salvaged rubble, creating changes in level without a drop of concrete.

This year, he’s introduced elements of ‘No Mow May’ at Pelham for the first time. This annual conservation campaign encourages gardeners to forgo mowing throughout May, allowing grass and native wildflowers to grow to support pollinators.  At Pelham, Andrew created a defined strip at the bottom of the garden left to grow freely, with a crisp edge that makes it look intentional rather than neglected. It’s already producing wildflowers, and the pollinators are loving it.

Choosing Pelham means your celebration is held in a space that’s genuinely cared for both on the day itself and in the long term.

The garden is waiting for you

Every couple who visits Pelham House gets the very best of the garden because Andrew and our team make sure of it. From the weekly visits to the daily wedding tidy-ups, from the seasonal planting plans to the small, quiet details that most guests will never consciously notice, it’s all there for you. Come and see it for yourself.