Right on Kew!
Open for summer... ten spectacular gardens with displays that can’t fail to banish those post-lockdown blues
BRITAIN’S best gardens have been closed to visitors since the start of the l ockdown but with the relaxation of restrictions, some have taken steps to unlock their gates. Here is my guide to ten of the finest gardens with summer interest that are currently open.
ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW
SET on the banks of the Thames, this 300- acre garden ( kew. org) boasts a diverse number of attractions. Visitors can enjoy deeply filled borders, a rose garden with 170 varieties and a Mediterranean garden dominated by King William’s Temple, built in 1837 for Queen Victoria. Unfortunately, the palm house and pagoda remain closed for the time being.
LOST GARDENS OF HELIGAN, CORNWALL
ORIGINALLY created in the 18th Century by the Tremayne family, the sprawling gardens ( heligan. com) were abandoned after the First World War and forgotten about until 1990, when they were the focus of a massive restoration project. The 200-acre landscape boasts herbaceous borders, woodland and a huge walled kitchen garden. Don’t miss the sub-tropical j ungle garden, which can be explored by raised boardwalks and a network of paths. Parts of the garden are currently operating a one-way system.
RHS ROSEMOOR, DEVON
STARTED as a private garden by Lady Anne Palmer in 1959, this 40-acre estate (rhs.org.uk) in the Torridge Valley has been extended by the Royal Horticultural Society since the late 1980s. Among summer highlights are the Queen Mother’s Rose Garden, with over 100 modern hybrid teas and cluster-flowered floribundas, while the nearby Hot Garden boasts perennials in shades of red, orange and yellow.
EXBURY, HAMPSHIRE
ESTABLISHED by banker Lionel de Rothschild in 1919, the 200acre woodland garden (exbury. co.uk) on the banks of the River Beaulieu is famous for its spring displays but has plenty to excite visitors in summer too. Explore the 20 miles of pathway and you’ll l find seasonal trees and shrubs, including some awesome hydrangea paniculata. Opened in 2019, its centennial garden is a formal space filled with perennials, while the adjoining sundial garden features tree ferns, canna lilies and a host of exotics.
BORDE HILL GARDEN, WEST SUSSEX
ENJOYING views over the High Weald, this 170-acre garden (borde hill.co.uk) was started in the early 1900s around an Elizabethan mansion bought by the Stephenson Clarke family. Set within 200 acres of parkland, it contains borders, a sub- tropical dell and an Italianstyle garden with a formal pool surrounded by pots of agapanthus. Planted in 1996, its rose garden is a showcase for 100 varieties developed by David Austin Roses, including ‘Graham Thomas’ and ‘Winchester Cathedral’.
BARNSDALE, RUTLAND
AN ICONIC plot in the heart of the East Midlands, this was the most famous garden in the country between 1983 and 1996, when it appeared on our screens every Friday night as home to BBC Gardeners’ World. Developed from farmland by the show’s presenter, Geoff Hamilton, who died in 1996, t he eight- acre site ( barnsdale gardens.co.uk) contains 38 individual gardens.
CASTLE HOWARD, NORTH YORKSHIRE
AN I MPOSING s t at el y home (castlehoward.co.uk) designed by Sir John Vanbrugh in the 18th Century sits at the heart of a 1,000acre landscape that was the setting for the hit 1980s TV series Brideshead Revisited. A magnificent tenacre walled garden contains a collection of 2,000 modern roses along with an ornamental kitchen garden, where vegetables, fruit and flowers rub shoulders. Elsewhere, there are water features and a host of classical garden buildings.
GIBSIDE, TYNE & WEAR
A FEW years ago, the 3 ½ - acre walled garden at Gibside (national trust. org. uk/ gibside) was little more than an overflow car park. However, since 2015 it has been transformed into a space full of flowers, fruits and vegetables. Elsewhere, the landscape around the ruins of a Jacobean mansion is strewn with ornamental buildings and eye- catchers, such as the 141ft-high Column to Liberty. Tickets go online every Friday for specific time slots and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
PICTON CASTLE AND GARDENS, PEMBROKESHIRE
DUE to reopen tomorrow, the 40-acre garden (pictoncastle.co.uk) enjoys sweeping views over the surrounding countryside. The grounds are spectacular, with a jungle garden full of leafy exotics, lakeside walks and a 19th Century walled garden packed with roses, perennials and grasses.
EDINBURGH BOTANIC GARDEN
A SHORT walk from the city centre, this botanic garden (rbge.org. uk) occupies a 77-acre site within a residential area. Summer highlights include a 540ft-long, colourgraded herbaceous border and a two-acre rock garden with mounds, gorges, screes and streams. From its highest spot there are fabulous views over the city skyline.
Pre-booking is essential. To ensure the safety of visitors, most gardens have reduced the number of people who can enter at any one time and have introduced an online system for pre-booking tickets and a time slot. Those without pre-booked tickets will not be admitted.