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Gardening

Recommending gardens to visit...or not!

(31 Posts)
Pittcity Wed 17-Aug-16 18:07:31

Have you added and reviewed your favourite gardens on your local GN pages? It's a good way of helping others choose where to go.

annodomini Wed 17-Aug-16 17:57:33

Hare Hill Gardens near Macclesfield, NT property with spectacular rhododendrons and azaleas in May - June.

J52 Wed 17-Aug-16 17:51:45

Barnsdale used to be a favourite place to visit, when we had people staying. Last time we went a couple of years ago it was a bit down at heel, but we thought it was due to the wet spring.

It was at its Hayday when Geoff was alive and was not too bad for several years after his death.

Luckygirl Wed 17-Aug-16 17:51:00

Hergest Croft gardens in May - thousands of rhododendrons, some of them grown wild in the wood.

kittylester Wed 17-Aug-16 17:45:17

I mentioned this a while ago in soop's kitchen, Merlot! I have been saying for ages that I would like to go but I thought it was appalling and would not recommend it at all.

merlotgran Wed 17-Aug-16 17:08:30

We've just got back from Barnsdale Gardens. We usually try to do two or three garden visits during the summer and as this one is only just over an hour from us it seemed a good bet especially as I loved Geoff Hamilton's Cottage Garden series.

What a disappointment! I know late August is not the time to see gardens at their best but most places take this into account and plan their planting to give plenty of colour and interest during high summer.

The plants all looked half dead with drought and the whole place was shabby and unkempt. You'd expect to see some staff out on the borders weeding or dead heading but we didn't see a single gardener the whole time we were there.

The small 'themed' gardens mostly contained the same plants - some of them decidedly out of place and apart from the Japanese Garden there was nothing of real interest.

Not a patch on The Old Vicarage at East Ruston.

Shame.