Having cycled to Wincanton yesterday, for our final day in Somerset I decided upon something more leisurely, a visit to a National Trust property – and Lytes Cary Manor was just the job.

It was a lovely sunny summer morning when I arrived. National Trust describes the property as an ‘Intimate manor house with Arts and Crafts-style garden’.

The manor was built by the Lytes family. They who owned it from the 13th to the 18th century. Unable to afford its upkeep they sold it and it consequently suffered decay. Sir Walter Jenner saved the estate when he bought Lytes Cary Manor in 1907. He proceeded to restore it to its seventeenth-century glory.

I started by looking around the gardens. Here there are collections of topiary and herbaceous borders.

I started by strolling along the main herbaceous borders.

Previous owners and tenants had farmed right up to the house. Sir Walter Jenner, therefore, created a new garden. The design was Arts and Craft inspired. It features mostly rectangular ‘rooms’ separated by yew hedges and stone walls, each reflecting a different mood or purpose.

The orchard is interesting in that you enter through some Weeping Ash Trees. It is crossed by wide mown paths which meet at a central sundial.

Next, I returned to the manor house.

The house dates to the mid-fifteenth century and was gradually expanded over the following centuries

The oldest part of the Manor, however, is the chapel. This dates back to 1343.

Inside it includes the crest of Sir Walter Jenner. There is also a frieze below the roof painted with the arms of the Lytes and their relations.

Having enjoyed a walk around the gardens and house, it was time for the obligatory cup of tea. Before setting off for home.

Lytes Cary Manor is a wonderful compact property, though there are extensive walks available around the estate if you wish. It is well worth a visit if you are in the area.