The UK’S winter wonders
We know there are many wonderful place for walks here in the West Country, but what about the rest of the UK? Hannah Stephenson gets her road map out and travels further afield to find the best walks for gardeners and garden lovers
PUBLIC gardens give gardeners inspiration for the seasons ahead, and show everyone that beautiful flora and fauna can be found at all times of year. Here are 10 gardens from around the UK which offer a wealth of amazing winter planting ranging from witch hazel and dogwood to snowdrops, honeysuckle and silver birch.
1. Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire
Designed specifically with plants that give winter colour, texture and fragrance, the garden at Anglesey Abbey is alive and vibrant during the cold months. Discover bright yellow and red dogwoods and the polished bark of the Tibetan cherry. Enjoy the scent of winter-flowering honeysuckle floating in the breeze and look out for the slender white trunks of the Himalayan silver birch grove. Afterwards, set out along easy footpaths to explore the winding fenland landscapes and wide open skies.
2. Bodnant Garden, Conwy, North Wales
With colourful and fragrant plants, Bodnant’s winter garden brightens up even the coldest of days. Discover coloured-stemmed birches, bright bergenias and bulbs such as snowdrops, iris, cyclamen and crocus. Enjoy the scent of winter shrubs such as hamamelis, daphne and sarcococca. Take a walk up through Furnace Wood and you’ll be rewarded with panoramic vistas over the garden.
3. RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Essex
The new Winter Garden at RHS Garden Hyde Hall celebrates the delights of winter, with its multitude of radiant stem colours, peeling barks, luminous leaf colours and dazzling berries. Coppiced willow sculpted into interesting shapes capture the imagination, and there is a vast array of winter interest, stark skeletal shapes and stunning silhouettes. The garden also includes a trial of almost 50 cultivars of cornus, including the bright red stems of Cornus alba Sibirica and the rarer Cornus alba Ruby.
4. Dunham Massey, Cheshire
The Dunham Massey winter garden is the largest of its kind in the UK. Take a winter stroll to see striking white-stemmed silver birch and bright dogwood barks, as well as colourful berries and winter flowers. Beneath the trees, thousands of bulbs spring to life over the cold season, including snowdrops, white cyclamen and striking blue winter irises. Out in the wider parkland you can discover Dunham’s collection of veteran trees, which have weathered many winters and look set to continue.
5. The Hermitage, Perthshire
This nature reserve protected by the National Trust for Scotland is a magical Perthshire forest-turned-winter-wonderland at this time of year. Home to some of the UK’S largest trees, take a walk through the towering Douglas firs and gaze over the beautiful Black Linn Falls, where spray from the surging river creates beautiful shimmering ice crystals across the surrounding rocks and trees, leaving one of the most fantastical sights of the season that Scotland can offer. Stroll along the banks of the River Braan and you may see snow chutes created by otters as they slide into the water on their bellies. Also, keep an eye out for the totem pole hidden in the woods and red squirrels darting about in the tree tops.
6. RHS Garden Harlow Carr, Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Adorned with daphnes, witch hazels, birch trees and maples, the striking stem colours and variety of forms, textures and breath-taking scents make this one of the largest and oldest concentrations of winter horticulture in the north of England.
7. Mount Stewart, County Down, Northern Ireland
Home to a healthy population of red squirrels, Mount Stewart’s gardens lie within a natural amphitheatre sheltered from strong winds, giving them a unique micro-climate. Discover white and pink winter-flowering rhododendrons, vibrant ‘Trewithen Blue’ flowers and bright yellow witch hazel. Magnolia and camellia come into flower early at Mount Stewart, so visit from mid-january for an early taste of spring.
8. Wallington, Northumberland
Explore the wonderful 18th-century pleasure ground waiting for you in the woods at Wallington. Follow the growing winter trail and take in the seasonal planting through the East Wood, with trees, shrubs and plants showcasing coloured and textured bark and winter berries. Discover the mini-lake covered in a sprinkling of frost and the enchanting walled garden, where the Edwardian conservatory bursts with colour and scent all year round.
9. RHS Garden Wisley, Surrey
The Winter Walk on Seven Acres is a must-see at this time of year for anyone interested in the wonders of winter horticulture. Look out for striking contrasts like white betula with a backdrop of blue cedar, or carpets of erica against stark arches of rubus. More colour is supplied by the vibrant stems of Salix alba var. vitellina Yelverton and Cornus sanguinea Magic Flame, delicate blooms of hellebore and Iris reticulata, polished purple Callicarpa berries and the fuzzy pink catkins of Salix gracilistyla Mount Aso.
10. Calke Abbey, Derbyshire
A little later in the season, as winter wanes and spring approaches, follow your nose to find scented shrubs such as wintersweet and witch hazel in Calke’s Pleasure Grounds. Carpets of snowdrops will start to peek through the ground, giving hope for the next year. It’s also worth taking a stroll around the wider estate to discover the secret walled gardens and parkland. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for the Old Man of Calke - a veteran oak tree that is over 1,000 years old.