National Garden Scheme - Travel Trade

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We invite you to visit a wide range of exceptionally beautiful gardens, from extensive country landscapes and romantic cottage gardens, to urban hideaways and ancient woodlands.  The National Garden Scheme searches the length and breadth of England and Wales for the very best private gardens. With more than 3,700 to choose from, there’s a perfect garden for everyone. Find yours at www.ngs.org.uk.

Gardens Opening for Group Visits in 2023

NEW Ashbrooke, Great Shefford, Hungerford

A small narrow garden, divided into three areas running down to the river Lambourn. Front with roses, shrubs, dahlias, tubs and baskets. The middle is a very wet garden down to the river with mixed herbaceous borders and planting to suit such conditions. Lower garden has a small pond, two green houses, veg plots and exhibition chrysanthemums on banks of the river Lambourn.

Open for group visits of 10 - 30 from 1 July to 20 August. £4 per person, teas can be arranged. To book a group visit please contact the garden owner, Jackie by phone on 07584 598189 or by email jackiefrith2468@gmail.com

 

Boxford House, Boxford, near Newbury

Beautiful large family garden extensively developed over the past 10 yrs. Emphasis on roses and scent throughout the 5 acre main garden. Old and new orchards, laburnum tunnel, formal and colourful herbaceous borders. Handsome formal terraces, pond, water features and garden woodland areas. Inviting cottage garden and productive vegetable gardens.

Open for group of 20 - 50 from May to the end of August. £11 per person includes a guided tour and refreshments.  To book a group visits please contact the Head Gardener, Tammy Darvell on 07802 883084 or by email tammydarvell@hotmail.com 

 

NEW 13 Broom Gardens, Sandhurst 

A spellbinding 1/4 acre suburban romantic-style garden with shrubbery, exotics, specimen trees, scented climbers and mixed herbaceous borders. Densely planted and decadently flowering, a feast for all the senses. Come for the garden, stay for the magic and discover why romance remains compelling, timeless and enduring.

Open for group visits of 10 - 30 from June to September. £5 per person. To book a group visit and to arrange tea and cake please contact the garden owner, Sunil by phone on 07974 403077 or by email garden@sunilpatel.co.uk 

 

Compton Elms, Pinkneys Green, near Maidenhead

A delightful spring garden set in a sunken woodland, lovingly recovered from clay pit workings. The atmospheric garden is filled with snowdrops, primroses, hellebores and fritillaria, interspersed with anemone and narcissi under a canopy of ash and beech

Open for groups of 15 - 40 from 21 March and 6 April. £10 per person, light refreshments included. To book a a visit please contact the garden owner, Alison by email kellettaj@gmail.com 

 

68 Church Road, Earley, Reading

A fascinating urban garden with changing elements throughout the seasons. Different areas showcase a variety of interesting plants, pergola, outdoor dining room and small summerhouse. The working greenhouse is home to alpines grown year-round and seen as specimen plants in the garden. A living roof covers the pergola. Tiered areas of hostas and an abundance of summer bedding.

Open for groups of 5-25 to visit from 19 June to 31 August. £5 per person. To book a visit please contact the garden owner by phone, Pat on 07809 613850 or by email patsi777@virginmedia.com 

 

Deepwood Stud Farm, Stubbings, near Maidenhead

Four acres of formal and informal gardens within a stud farm, so great roses! Small lake with Monet style bridge and three further water features. Several neo-classical follies and statues. Walled garden with windows cut in to admire the views and horses. Woodland walk and enough hanging baskets to decorate a pub!

Open for groups of 10+ from 1 March to 31 October. £10 per person to include teas.  To book a visit please contact the garden owner, Mrs Goodwin by phone  01628 822684 or email ed.goodwin@deepwood.co (the email is correct)

 

Handpost, Swallowfield, near Reading

Four acre designer's garden with many areas of interest. Features inc four lovely long herbaceous borders attractively and densely planted in different colour sections, a formal rose garden, an old orchard with a grass meadow, pretty pond and peaceful wooded area. Large variety of plants, trees and a productive fruit and vegetable patch.

Open for groups of 10 - 35 for visits from 1 May to 1 September. £10 per person includes tea/coffee and home-made cake To book a visit please phone the garden owner, Faith on 07801 239937 or by email faith@mycountrygarden.co.uk. 

 

Island Cottage, Newbury

A pretty, small waterside garden set between the River Kennet and the Kennet and Avon Canal. Interesting combinations of colour and texture to look at rather than walk through, although visitors are welcome to do that too. A deck overlooks a sluiceway towards a lawn and border. Started from scratch in 2005 and mostly again after the floods of 2014. Being simplified for manageability!

Open for a group of 22 maximum from 28 May to 30 September. £4 per person. Teas by arrangement. To book a visit contact the garden owner, Karen by email karen@lockisland.com (unfortunately there is no phone signal at Island Cottage). 

 

Lower Bowden Manor, Bowden Green, Pangbourne

A 5 acre designer's garden with stunning views and where structure predominates. Specimen trees show contrasting bark and foliage. A marble ‘Pan’ plays to a pond with boulders and boulder-shaped evergreens. Versailles planters with standard topiaries line a rill. A stumpery leads to the orchard’s carpet of daffodils and later a wave of white hydrangeas.

Open for group of up to 50 all year ie from 1 January to 31 December. £7. Home-made teas by arrangement. To book a visit contact the garden owner, Robert by email robert.cox-nicol@orange.fr or by phone 07552 217872. 

 

The Old Rectory, Inkpen, Hungerford

On a gentle hillside with views of the Inkpen Hill, the Old Rectory offers a peaceful setting for this pretty 5.7 acre garden. Originally an historic 1.5 ha formal garden to the south of the 17th century Rectory, it is on a gentle slope surrounded by later additions of a walled kitchen garden, herbaceous borders, pleached lime walks and a recently cultivated wildflower meadow and countryside views.

Open for groups of up to 30 from 1 June to 30 September. £10 per person, home made teas included.  To book a visit contact the garden owner, Mrs McKeon by phone 07850678239 or by email at oldrectoryinkpen@gmail.com. 

 

Rooksnest, Lambourn Woodlands, Hungerford

Approx 10 acre, exceptionally fine traditional English garden. Rose garden, herbaceous garden, pond garden, herb garden, fruit, vegetable and cutting garden and glasshouses. Many specimen trees and fine shrubs, orchard and terraces. Garden mostly designed by Arabella Lennox-Boyd.

Open for groups of 15 - 20 from 5 April to 28 June. For full details or to book a visit contact the Head Gardener, Kevin Jordan by phone on 07787 085565 or by email at gardens@rooksnest.net.

 

Stockcross House, Stockcross, Newbury

Romantic 2 acre garden set around a former rectory (not open). Deep mixed borders with emphasis on strong, complementary colour combinations. Large orangery, wisteria and clematis clad pergola, folly with pond reflecting the church tower. Croquet lawn and pavilion. Naturalistic planting and pond on lower level, small stumpery, fernery and kitchen garden. A double pair of red ornamental gates, also by Melissa Cole and created to celebrate a Ruby Wedding anniversary, were featured on BBC Countryfile.

Open for groups of 10 - 50 from 1 May to 30 September. £10. To book a visit contact the owner, Mrs Vandyk on 07836 727212 or email susan@vandyk.co.uk .

 

7 The Knapp, Earley, Reading

A mature suburban garden, surrounded by trees and divided into rooms with lawns, island beds, borders, gravel garden, pond and an area with wildlfowers. The highlights are the roses, particularly rambling roses over gazebos and arches and the wildflower areas. 

Open for groups of 5 - 20 from 22 May to 8 July. £7.50 includes tea and cake. To book a visit contact the owner, Ann on 07881 451708 or email annmckie@hotmail.co.uk .

 

St Timothee, Pinkneys Green, nr Maidenhead

A 2 acre country garden planted for year-round interest with a variety of different colour-themed borders each featuring a wide range of hardy perennials, shrubs and ornamental grasses. Also inc a box parterre, wildlife pond and rose terrace together with areas of long grass and beautiful mature trees, all set against the backdrop of a 1930s house.  Featured extensively across all seasons in UK and European magazines as well as being filmed for Gardeners World in 2021 and voted as South East and overall winner of The Nation's Favourite Garden competition also in 2021.

Open for groups of 10 - 50 from 17 January - 9 November. 

From 22 May to end-August group visits can be combined with a slideshow talk such as 'Successional Planting’, 'The Beauty of going a bit Wild’ or 'Creating my Garden’.

The garden owner, Sarah, is also offering a limited number of group visits on selected dates in what are traditionally regarded as the 'off-seasons' (ie Winter, Spring and Autumn). These will be ’Talk and Walk’ events on 'The Winter Garden’, 'The Joy of Spring Bulbs’ and 'Ornamental Grasses and the Autumn Garden’. All these visits are priced at £16 per person which will include a 45-60 minute fully illustrated slideshow as well as tea/coffee and home-made cake. They are for a minimum of 10 people (or the financial equivalent) and a maximum of 25.