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26 beautiful British gardens to visit for every season
In every corner of Britain and Ireland, there is another beautiful garden to be discovered, each with its own variety of beautiful flowers and unique design. Taking an insider's road trip around the UK and Ireland, our garden editor Clare Foster rounds up beautiful gardens to visit that are off the beaten track, from a wonderful garden in the Scottish Highlands with a vast variety of snowdrops, to a contemporary garden in Sussex. Some of these gardens (as well as many more) can be accessed via the National Garden Scheme, an always brilliant source for finding less well-known gardens in any part of Great Britain and Ireland.
GAP Photos/Mark Bolton - Garden; The Picton Garden, Herefordshire1/26Old Court Nurseries
Asters are the mainstay of autumn planting schemes and there is no better place to see the huge array of colourful varieties available than at The Picton Garden and nursery in Worcestershire. This family-run garden and Old Court Nurseries was established in 1906 and its National Collection of over 430 aster varieties can be admired in the garden. Most are also available in the nursery, so you will be able to return home with plants to brighten your space. The garden is open daily September 1-October 20, 11am-5pm.
2/26Cambo, Fife
Open daily, this garden near St Andrews is a joy to visit at any time of year. In late summer, the prairie garden comes into its own, with hundreds of North American plants and grasses creating a colourful, dynamic spectacle. A 2.5-acre Georgian walled garden is built around the delightful Cambo Burn, with impressive herbaceous borders, an ornamental potager and new cutting garden, while the Stables Visitor Centre includes a café and a shop. The gardens are open daily 10am-5pm and entry is £7.50.
Steve Adams3/26Millennium Garden, Pensthorpe Natural Park, Norfolk
Planted by Piet Oudolf 21 years ago, the Millennium Garden at Pensthorpe Natural Park comes into its own in late summer and autumn. Drifts of perennials and grasses mingle together to show how spectacular a garden can look at this time of year, with the focus on seed heads, foliage and plumes of ornamental grasses. This dense, self-supporting sea of plants is a haven for wildlife, providing nesting materials and seeds for birds, as well as shelter for insects. The garden is open throughout the year, Wednesdays to Sundays, 10am-4pm; adult entry is £15.95.
4/26Hergest Croft Gardens, Herefordshire
Set in the Welsh Marches with views of the Malvern Hills, Hergest Croft is a wonderful garden to visit, especially in the autumn, with more than 5,000 rare trees and shrubs. It holds a National Collection of maples, including some rare specimens brought back from China in the Eighties. These trees are a brilliant spectacle, as they turn vibrant shades of red, ochre and yellow in the autumn. A secluded valley is planted with over 30 acres of exotic trees and giant rhododendrons, while herbaceous borders and a kitchen garden make this an interesting place to visit year round. The gardens are open daily 11am-4.30pm until the end of October; adult entry is £8.50.
hergest.co.uk
Rhapsody5/26Hunting Brook Gardens, Ireland
A visit to Jimi Blake’s garden in County Wicklow is an exciting and immersive experience in the spring or summer, but it is at this time of year that the garden is at its colourful best. Described by Jimi as ‘contemporary exotic’, Hunting Brook has five acres intensively planted with an abundance of late-summer plants, including salvias, heliopsis, cosmos and Jimi’s own dahlia selections. There is also an innovative sand garden planted with hundreds of succulents and cacti, with Mediterranean plants woven through. Open Thursday to Saturday, 11am-4pm, re-opening in April; entry €8.
MMGI / Marianne Majerus6/26Horatio's Garden
Horatio's Garden is a charity devoted to making amazing gardens in spinal injury centres around the UK. Created by some of the country's leading garden designers, these spaces are always open to the public, but this year sees the first series of special tours. Autumn openings include Horatio's Garden Wales (by Sarah Price) on September 3, Horatio's Garden Midlands (Bunny Guinness) on September 18 and Horatio's Garden London & South East (Tom Stuart-Smith) on October 16. Led by each centre's head gardener, the 90-minute tours cost £20.
7/26Wimpole Hall, Cambridgeshire
This impressive house in Cambridgeshire is part of a working estate that includes parkland, a farm and a walled garden. With its variety of fruit trees, Wimpole’s orchard looks spectacular in spring, while the walled garden is home to many trained varieties. Beginning with apricot, plum and greengage blossom early in the season, the beauty continues with apples and pears and, finally, medlars and quinces. Daffodils, fritillaries and tulips add to the views. Open daily 9.30–4.30pm all year round; adult admission is £18.
8/26Borde Hill Gardens, Sussex
Set within 383 acres of parkland, Borde Hill gardens feature one of the largest privately owned collections of champion trees. In spring, wonderful magnolias flower in profusion, with swathes of rhododenrons and azalias creating an uplifting and colourful spectacle. The formal gardens are arranged in a series of garden rooms, including a rose garden, lily pond and a horseshoe shaped azalea garden. The garden is open February 10 to December 22 2024; adult entry is £12.20.
9/26Caerhays Castle, Cornwall
Making a pilgrimage to Caerhays Gardens in early spring to see the magnolias should be on every gardener’s bucket list. From mid-February through to early summer, magnolias cascade one after another into spectacular bloom. Situated in the verdant Luney valley on the southern Cornish coast, the gardens span 140 acres of wooded hillside above an extraordinary gothic castle designed by John Nash at the beginning of the 19th century. The magnolia collection here includes some magnificent trees over 100 years old, planted as new species were sent over from China. The gardens are open from February 12 to June 16 2024; adult entry is £12.
10/26Winter
Trentham, Staffordshire
Trentham in Staffordshire is a treat to visit in winter when the landscape is pared back and the light is low. The mile-long Capability Brown designed lake is bordered by the Italian Garden (pictured), which was designed by Sir Charles Barry in the nineteenth century and replanted by Tom Stuart-Smith in 2004–5. There is also a floral labyrinth and rivers of grass designed by Piet Oudolf. The borders are filled with perennials and grasses that are left standing through winter, so there is plenty to see against the formal geometry of the garden. The gardens are open daily 9am-4pm; admission £13.
Fred Cholmeley11/26Easton Walled Gardens, Lincolnshire
This historic garden in Lincolnshire has been brought back from dereliction and lovingly restored by Ursula Cholmeley over the past 20 years. With meadows, grassy terraces, cottage-garden borders and its woodland walks, Easton is a delight at any time of year and, in February, the snow-drops are a special attraction. Carpeting the woodland slopes in thick drifts, they mingle with winter aconites and hellebores in an uplifting display. The Gardens are open Wednesday-Sunday 11am-4pm; adult entry £10.
visiteaston.co.uk
Andrew Montgomery12/26Rousham Gardens, Oxfordshire
Designed by the 18th-century landscape architect William Kent, the splendid garden at Rousham remains almost exactly the same as when it was first conceived. Open every day of the year from 10am-4.30pm, the garden is a treat to visit in winter when the bare bones of the landscape are revealed. The landscape garden that Kent built is set out on a slope above the River Cherwell, with statuary, follies, lakes and the famous rill that runs down through woodland. The more recent walled garden, dovecote and box parterre is equally picturesque in winter. Adult entry is £10.
Eva Nemeth13/26Southwood Farm, Devon
This delightful garden was designed by Arne Maynard for a characterful 17th-century thatched farmhouse, and it shows how contemporary design can be successful in a traditional setting. In spring it has displays of hybrid tulips in the borders near the house, as well as species tulips, fritillaries and cowslips in the meadow areas, and spring blossom in the orchard. The garden is open for the National Garden Scheme April 20-21 and September 14-15, 2-5pm. Admission £6.
14/26Forde Abbey, Somerset
Plan a visit to Chard, Somerset, to see the spectacular tulips at Forde Abbey. Planted in interconnected spirals in the grass, over 10,000 tulips bloom each year and visitors can walk through these areas to see the blooms up close. More spring flowers can be found in the Rock Garden and the Bog Garden, where beautiful primulas brighten a silted-up area of the Great Pond. The garden is open daily from March 1 to October 31; adult entry is £18.
fordeabbey.co.uk
15/26Antony Woodland Garden, Cornwall
With a wonderful setting alongside the Lynher Estuary near Plymouth, Antony Woodland Garden was originally designed in the 18th century by Humphry Repton and Reginald Pole-Carew. It is particularly magical in spring, with nearly 250 different types of magnolia and swathes of primroses, celandines and bluebells. This year, the garden is due to be until the end of October, 10.30am-5pm, and is closed on Mondays (except on Bank Holidays); adult entry is £9.
antonywoodlandgarden.com
16/26Feeringbury Manor, Essex
Although they look as if they have been here for hundreds of years, the gardens at Feeringbury Manor have been created over the past 40 years around a 14th-century manor house. With two ponds and the River Blackwater running through the gardens, there are many different habitats, and although a yew framework provides structure, the planting is lush and informal. It is a particularly wonderful sight in spring with glorious blossom, a jewelled lawn and many varieties of tulip. The garden is open frequently through the NGS through spring and summer. Admission £6.
17/26Knightshayes, Devon
This is one of the finest woodland gardens in the country, with lots of different areas to explore. In early spring, the slopes are studded with magnolias and camellias, with erythroniums and wood anemones underneath. If you leave your visit until slightly later, the rhododendrons and bluebells will be out. The garden is open 10am–5pm and entry costs £15.
Andrew Montgomery18/26Summer
Great Dixter, East Sussex
The former home of gardener and gardening writer Christopher Lloyd, Great Dixter has a different character in each season, demonstrating head gardener Fergus Garrett's talent for successional planting. Being able to visit Great Dixter at various points in the year is a treat, but summer has a particular draw, with the Exotic Garden and Long Border at their best. An annual ticket costs £40 or £50 for a couple and allows unlimited admission during opening hours, as well as a 10 per cent discount on plants from the nursery. Single adult entry costs £16. The gardens are open Tuesday-Sunday 11am-5pm from the end of March to end of October.
19/26West Dean Gardens, Sussex
The walled kitchen garden at West Dean is a wonderful example of a traditional productive garden with fruit and vegetables alongside borders of cut flowers. Traditional Victorian glasshouses are filled with tender plants and immaculately trained fruit trees clad the walls. Elsewhere in the grounds a new gravel garden is being developed by head gardener Tom Brown. The gardens are open daily, 9.30am-5pm (March-October) and 9.30-4pm (November-March); adult entry is £13 (£7.50 autumn and winter).
- Geography Photos/Getty Images20/26
Scampston Hall, Yorkshire
The spectacular contemporary walled garden at Scampston was designed by Dutch garden designer Piet Oudolf in 1999. Dividing the area into different sections, he used serpentine yew, cubes of box and pleached limes to provide structural emphasis and contrasts within the garden. His Perennial Meadow, which sits in front of the Conservatory, comes into its own in late summer, with swathes of colourful herbaceous plants and grasses mingling in naturalistic drifts. The garden is open Wednesday to Sunday from the end of March to end of October each year, 10am-5pm; adult entry is £10.50.
Dean Hearne21/26Perch Hill Gardens, Sussex
Sarah Raven’s stunning garden at her home in Sussex is open on select days through spring and summer. The late summer open days showcase her extensive collection of dahlias, grown in the cutting garden as well as in large pots. A floral style guru, Sarah always leads the way in selecting new varieties, sourcing her dahlias direct from Holland, so you will come away with plenty of ideas. The garden is open August 15, 16, 29 & 30, and September 12 & 13. Admission prices start at £17.50.
Jason Ingram22/26Chatsworth, Derbyshire
The legendary Chatsworth gardens have been brought up to date recently with the Arcadia project. This ambitious transformation of the gardens includes Tom Stuart-Smith’s remodelling of the Rock Garden and Dan Pearson’s redevelopment of the Trout Stream area. Together with the traditional early features including the Canal Pond, Cascade and the First Duke’s Greenhouse, they create a wonderful garden experience whatever time of year you visit. The gardens are open daily, 10.30am-5pm (4.30pm autumn); adult entry £20.
ANDREW MONTGOMERY23/26Knepp Walled Garden, Sussex
This ground-breaking new garden was planted in 2021 to a design by Tom Stuart-Smith. Featuring more than 1000 different species of drought-tolerant plants, this experimental garden has been created by layering sand and rubble as a growing medium, demonstrating the incredible biodiversity that can be achieved in impoverished conditions. The Walled Garden is not officially open to the public but Knepp offers a range of different garden tours and workshops that include access to the garden. The Introduction to the Rewilded Garden Tour costs £35 per person and takes place on various dates between May and October. For booking visit the website.
24/26Beth Chatto Gardens, Essex
The wonderful gardens of legendary plantswoman Beth Chatto continue to draw the crowds. The 7.5 acre gardens are designed to show how you can plant ecologically in different conditions, with different areas including the gravel garden, water garden and woodland garden. A garden visit is always enhanced by a plant purchase or two, and you can shop at the award-winning nursery after you have seen the plants in situ. The gardens are open Thursday to Saturday from the beginning of April to mid December; adult entry is £14.95 (£13.95 if pre-booked).
25/26Broughton Grange, Oxfordshire
This spectacular walled garden was designed by Tom Stuart in 2000, comprising three terraces that contrast structural green architecture with exuberant herbaceous planting. The top terrace features a Mediterranean climate walled border and a small fruit and vegetable growing area; the middle terrace showcases a formal pool and striking beech topiary; and the lower terrace has an amorphous box parterre based on the microscopic leaf structure of native beech. The garden is open every Wednesday from 10am to 4pm; adult entry is £12.
26/26Mapperton, Dorset
Mapperton is a wonderful, romantic garden near Beaminster, tucked away in its own romantic Dorset combe. Overlooked by a Jacobean mansion, it has features dating back to the 17th century. With an Italianate topiary garden and orangery, colourful herbaceous borders, an arboretum and stone-edged pools, it is full of interest all summer long. It is open to the public from spring until the end of September, Sunday to Thursday 11am to 5pm; adult entry is £14.50.
mapperton.com
