Late bloomers
Fancy a riot of colour until early autumn? Then take inspiration from these ten of the best...
AT THE end of summer many gardens look past their best, but there are plenty that will provide inspiration as temperatures begin to cool. Here are ten of the best gardens that look fantastic into early autumn… TREBAH, CORNWALL TREBAH is a sub-tropical treasure, a 25-acre garden filled with bamboos, tree ferns, palms and massive stands of gunnera, along with plenty of late-flowering plants, such as agapanthus, Schizostylis and ginger lilies. And don’t miss the two-acre hydrangea valley. Open daily, 10am-5pm. trebahgarden.co.uk SUSSEX PRAIRIE GARDEN, WEST SUSSEX NINE years ago, Paul and Pauline McBride decided to transform a field at the base of the Sussex Weald into a garden. There are now more than 30,000 plants in beds up to 50ft wide, with phlox, sanguisorba, sedum and echinacea grown in large drifts. There’s also a plant sale at the site on September 3. Open daily (except Tuesday). sussexprairies.co.uk BRESSINGHAM GARDENS, NORFOLK DURING the 20th Century, Alan Bloom was a noted plantsman, responsible for launching or naming 170 plants, such as Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’. This and many other perennials can still be found in the Dell Garden, his plot at 16acre Bressingham Gardens. Open daily, 10.30am-5pm. thebressinghamgardens.com KELMARSH HALL, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE THE gardens are the work of three of the 20th Century’s most influential gardeners – Nancy Lancaster, Norah Lindsay and Geoffrey Jellicoe. Extending to 200ft, the long border is full of colour but the crown jewel is the triangular walled garden crammed with scores of different dahlias. Open Tuesday to Thursday, and Sunday, 11am-5pm. kelmarsh.com PICTON GARDEN, WORCESTERSHIRE THIS plot in the Malvern Hills boasts one of the largest collections of asters in the world. More than 400 different types can be found in the one-and-a-half-acre garden, providing interest from August until the end of October. The perennials are displayed in a series of beds with shrubs, grasses and other late-flowering perennials, such as helianthus and eupatorium. Open Wednesday-Sunday (until August 31), and daily from September 1 to October 20, 11am-5pm. autumnasters.co.uk SCAMPSTON HALL, NORTH YORKSHIRE A FOUR-ACRE space has been divided into a series of ‘rooms’, including a perennial meadow garden, where four beds arranged around a central pool are planted with perennials and grasses. Open Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-5pm. scampston.co.uk DARLEY PARK, DERBY THE largest collection of hydrangeas in Britain (and the third largest in the world) can be found in this public park within walking distance of Derby city centre. Council gardeners have gathered a staggering 430 different ones over the past 30 years, including 88 lacecap varieties. Open daily, hydrangeaderby. co.uk LOGAN BOTANIC GARDEN, DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY THIS 24-acre site enjoys a mild climate thanks to the Gulf Stream, which allows all sorts of tender plants to thrive. The highlight is the magnificent walled garden full of salvias, argyranthemum and crocosmia. Open daily from March 15 to October 31 and Sundays only in February, 10am-5pm. rbge.org.uk/the-gardens/logan CRATHES CASTLE, ABERDEENSHIRE BUILT on land given to the Burnett family by Robert the Bruce in the 14th Century, the stronghold overlooks a four-acre walled garden with late-summer borders dominated by big drifts of pink, red and yellow flowers. Closer to the house is the upper pool garden, designed by Lady Sybil Burnett in the early 20th Century, where more vibrant shades fight for attention, including red Open dahlias daily, and 11am-4pm,bright orange nts.org.uk/Visit/lilies. Crathes-Castle BODNANT GARDEN, WALES A SERIES of terraces feature late-summer stalwarts such as dahlias and late-flowering roses, while a sloping rock garden is peppered with streams and waterfalls that lead down to the River Hiraethlyn. Open daily, 10am-5pm. nationaltrust.org.uk/ bodnant-garden