TV star and horticulturist Monty Don sparked a fan reaction at the weekend when he shared a glimpse inside a rarely-seen corner of his sprawling family garden.
Taking to Instagram on Saturday, the 68-year-old presenter, who lives with his wife Sarah in Herefordshire, uploaded a wholesome snapshot of his glorious summer patio complete with a greenhouse, potted plants, an outdoor stove and a beautifully laid dining table topped with an azure blue table cloth.
In his caption, he wrote: "June dinner al fresco".
Monty also perfectly captured one of his beloved pet pooches basking in the evening sunshine. The Gardeners' World presenter is a proud owner to Ned, Patti and Peggy, and has previously spoken about his special bond with his canine clan.
Speaking about his love of dogs on his website, he penned: "I have lived with dogs all my life and so it is absolutely natural to me that wherever I am in the garden I should be accompanied by a dog or two. It is their garden as much as mine or any other members of the family."
He continued: "Something that I take for granted is that, by and large, they do absolutely no damage and respect the garden completely. They (rarely) dig holes or crash through the flower beds. They do treat the long paths as bowling alleys down which they career in chase of the ball that we are obliged to throw, but it is harmless enough."
Monty's legion of followers flooded the comments section with sweet messages. Blown away by the beautiful space, one follower wrote: "Look at that cute little greenhouse! What a lovely space, I don’t believe we’ve seen it before", while a second remarked: "Love your colour combination" and a third added: "Looks absolutely fabulous, love the colours very Mediterranean."
Monty's Tudor hall home
Monty and his wife Sarah snapped up Longmeadow in October 1991. "When we bought this house it was a ruin – no roof, electricity, running water or sanitation," Monty told The English Home. "It took 10 years to finish the initial building work."
The couple have since transformed their home and garden into a tranquil oasis bursting with colour.
Steeped in history, Monty describes his house as "A Tudor hall house characterised by a lot of 500-year-old oak beams. Scruffy, quirky and spacious, it is designed around creative life rather than entertaining or impressing," he explained to The English Home.
Their unique property boasts 10 work rooms and studios, a sitting room and four bedrooms. Outside, meanwhile, the couple have transformed their two-acre space into an idyllic haven segmented into various smaller zones known as the 'Jewel', 'Cottage', 'Paradise' and 'Vegetable' gardens.