TOP 10 Gardens
Bed down and enjoy these magnificent gardens which truly are a cut above at this time of year
1CHATSWORTH, DERBYSHIRE Family ticket
€41 The green-fingered talent of Lancelot Brown is very evident in the 18th century Capability garden set in the grounds of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire’s stately home. Five miles of footpaths criss-cross the 105 acres, where you’ll find a huge rockery, pinetum, giant water features – including a 200ft-high fountain – sculptures and a maze, along with the rose, cottage and kitchen gardens. See the picturesque Arboretum and Trout Stream, which was instrumental in winning the Best Show Garden award at the 2015 Chelsea Flower Show by inspiring designer Dan Pearson. Plants and rocks from the show garden have been installed and planted along the Stream. And this year the Royal Horticultural Society is going further afield with the opening of a new annual RHS flower show in Chatsworth’s breathtaking parkland, on the banks of the River Derwent (June 7-11, rhs.org.uk/ chatsworth-show). ADMISSION Garden only €15 adults, €8 children, family €41. mirror.co.uk/traveltop10
2NATIONAL BOTANIC GARDEN OF WALES, CARMARTHENSHIRE
Family ticket €28 Voted the number one Wonder of Wales, the first botanic garden created in the new millennium has the world’s largest single-spanned glasshouse. The award-winning Norman Foster-designed hothouse is the spectacular home of the best display of Mediterranean plants in the northern hemisphere. In the Apothecary’s Garden you can trawl through a “pharmacy” of healing herbs and plants. At the Bee Garden you won’t be stung watching a quarter of a million honey bees going about their work, through large windows. And at the restored Regency double-walled garden you can learn about the evolution of the flowering plant. To celebrate International Fascination of Plants Day, curator Will Ritchie and plant lover Bruce Langridge will be leading a guided walk around seven of the most amazing plants in the Botanic Garden (May 18, free with admission). ADMISSION Adults from €12, children €5, under-fives free, family ticket (two adults and up to four children) €27.
3mirror.co.uk/traveltop10 TRESCO ABBEY GARDEN, ISLES OF SCILLY Family ticket from
€41 Hop on to a boat and steer to the family-owned island of Tresco and its world-famous sub-tropical gardens, lying 30 miles off the Cornish coast. This 17-acre horticultural gem, established in 1834, is home to thousands of
extraordinary exotic and unusual plants from 80 countries. All thrive in the balmy climate – it is one of the warmest places in the UK... even in winter there will be over 300 plants in bloom. ADMISSION Adults €18, under-12s €6, under-twos free. mirror.co.uk/traveltop10
4STOURHEAD, WILTSHIRE Family
ticket from €47 This spectacular 1,000hectare estate of ancient woods and parkland played its part in the Pride and Prejudice film starring Keira Knightley. When it opened in the mid-18th century, Stourhead was lauded as a “living work of art”. Classical temples, grottos and follies are scattered over this magical garden – including the Temple of Apollo where Elizabeth Bennett turned down Mr Darcy’s proposal. The view across the lake, framed by trees and plants reflected in the water, is one of the most-photographed National Trust sites. ADMISSION Adults from €19, children from €9, family ticket from €47. Until May 27 there are daily guided tours (included in ticket). mirror.co.uk/traveltop10
5HAMPTON COURT PALACE, SURREY Family
ticket from €60 As befits this royal pad, the quintessentially English gardens are exquisite. After his appointment as Chief Gardener to King George III, Capability Brown made Wilderness House at the Palace his home – the house came with the job of preserving Hampton Court’s Baroque formal gardens. Brown also planted a vine in 1768, said to be the largest in the world. It still produces sweet grapes which you can buy in September. And the Palace’s Thames riverside setting provides a majestic backdrop for the annual
Hampton Court Flower Show ( July 4-9, rhs.org.uk).
ADMISSION Palace, Maze and Gardens from €23 adults, from €12 under-16s, under-fives free, family ticket from €60. mirror. co.uk/traveltop10
6ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW, LONDON Family from ticket €38 London’s largest Unesco World Heritage Site dates back to the mid-18th century, making it the earliest botanic garden in the world. On its 326 acres, you can explore the iconic glass-houses or branch out to the Arboretum and its 14,000 trees. Pop into the historic Palm House, home to the world’s oldest pot plant which arrived in Kew in 1775. A team of gardeners had the job of re-potting the one-ton Jurassic cycad in 2009. Let the Kew Explorer land train take the strain on a 40-minute tour. For a bird’s-eye view, take to the Treetop Walkway and stroll through the canopy 60 feet above ground. Coming into peak bloom, enjoy the 320m long Great Broad Walk Borders, the longest herbaceous border in the country. ADMISSION Adults from €16, kids from €3 (four-16), under-fours free, family from €38. Daily Introduction to the Gardens tours are included. mirror.co.uk/traveltop10
7CRAGSIDE, NORTHUMBERLAND Family ticket from €33
Just outside the town of Rothbury, this National Trust Victorian house was the first in the world to be lit by hydro-electricity, thanks to Lord Armstrong. Not only was he an extraordinary inventor but a landscape genius – in the incredible garden is one of the largest rock gardens in Europe, with a waterfall and artificial lakes, along with the oldest iron bridge of its style in England. It’s worth visiting in spring for the dazzling display of tulips and daffodils. ADMISSION From €13 adults, from €6 kids, €33 family. mirror. co.uk/traveltop10
8BLENHEIM PALACE, OXON
Family ticket €48 “The finest view in England” awaits you in the 2,000-acre parkland, according to Sir Winston Churchill’s father. There’s plenty to admire in the formal gardens: majestic water terraces, a rose garden and grand cascade, a giant maze and a secret garden. Now’s the time to catch the lambs in the Capability Brown Parkland on a Lamb
Buggy Tour (daily until June 3, €4 adult, €3 child). Alan Titchmarsh will be opening this year’s Blenheim Palace Flower show ( June 23-25, blenheimflowershow.co.uk). ADMISSION Gardens From €18 adults, €8 kids (five-16), free for under-fives, family €48. mirror. co.uk/traveltop10
9ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH Free The Scottish Rhododendron Festival is in full bloom (until May 31). The iconic garden has the largest cultivated collection of tropical rhododendrons in the world , with some 260 species in the Montane Tropics Glasshouse. Guided tours of the 70-acre site run from April 1 to October 31 (€7). ADMISSION Entry to the Garden is free. Glasshouse entrance from €7 adults, children under 16 free. mirror.co.uk/traveltop10
10NEWSTEAD ABBEY, NOTTS Family ticket from €23 Horticultural fans with literary leanings will fall in love with this glorious garden on this 300-acre estate, home to one of our greatest romantic poets Lord Byron. Roam round the grounds and explore the Rose Garden, Small Walled Garden and Spanish Garden – you’ll see why the “mad, bad and dangerous to know” wordsmith found plenty to inspire him. Then relax by the Lake, an ideal residence for herons and kingfishers and ducks. Follow the Boatswain Trail and find the clues to win a prize (May 27 – June 4, €1). ADMISSION €7 per car for park and gardens. mirror.co.uk/traveltop10