Caps Browning Smith, Senior Gardener, Hardy’s Cottage, Dorset says:
Lupins were introduced to the UK from as early as 1637. Thomas Hardy would have been familia with these typical English cottage garden flower when he set out the "flower knot" garden, with his friend Herman Lea; in front of Hardy`s Cottage.
Few authors have such strong associations with the natural and cultural heritage of their local area as Thomas Hardy. This cottage, where Hardy was born in 1840, was built of cob and thatch by his great-grandfather. Writing was Hardy's first love, and it was from here that he wrote several of his early short stories, poetry and novels including 'Under the Greenwood Tree' and 'Far from the Madding Crowd’. The garden reflects most people's idea of a typical cottage garden, with roses around the door, and the sound of birdsong.