
Five days of Gorgeous Gardens Itinerary
Known for its rich, fertile ground, Herefordshire offers many beautiful gardens. Here’s a round-up of our recommendations for garden lovers.

Day 1
Make the most of your stay at Kentchurch Court with a guided tour of our own gardens and deer park (book in advance). Hailed by The Guardian as one of the ‘12 best secret gardens in the UK’, the roots of our gardens lie in the picturesque landscape style of the early 1800s. Our head gardener will take you on a deep dive into Kentchurch’s rich history, sharing his insights into gardening here as well as family stories dating back to the early 1800s when the garden was originally developed by the Scudamores.
Afterwards, you’ll tour the Deer Park together. This former royal hunting ground, originally belonging to the Knights Templar, was bought by the family back in 1547. Fallow deer graze here amongst the deciduous trees, including yew, sweet chestnut, some of the largest field maples in the country and ‘Jack of Kent’s’ oak tree, one of the largest and oldest in Britain.
Later, pause for tea and cake in the Tea Room before browsing the plants for sale in our small nursery.
Day 2
We always recommend a trip to Brobury House Gardens (17 miles) Set on the banks of the River Wye, it’s a stunning terraced Victorian garden with panoramic countryside views .
Open all year round, there’s colour and interest across the seasons, whilst water is a recurring theme. A Lutyens-inspired grotto with double steps and parterre overlooks a sunken garden, whilst informal paths from the bog garden follow a stream, passing ponds and meandering through woodland and architectural planting to reach the water meadow.
Magnificent mature trees create natural structure to the garden, with many of such a grand age that they are recorded in the Woodland Ancient Tree Inventory. They include the towering Corsican pine, black mulberry, copper birch and a huge 400-year-old oak.
Open every day from 10am to 5pm (or dusk), large groups are requested to book their visit in advance. There’s also a super cafe in the Walled Garden, offering all-day dining plus indoor and outdoor seating.
Day 3
Drive a little further north to discover Rhodds Farm Garden (25 miles). Described by Country Life magazine as a ‘timeless, romantic garden’, it’s an absolute delight and opens from May until end August.
Very natural and interesting in style, it’s home to formal and informal planting, double herbaceous borders in hot colours, a gravel garden, formal garden with dovecote (as well as 30 resident white doves), wildflower meadow, several ponds, a small arboretum and woodland.
Open from May until end August on Fridays and Saturdays. Groups also welcome at other times, by appointment.

Day 4
The Laskett (9 miles) is another favourite, created over 47 years by Sir Roy Strong and his late wife Julia Trevelyan Oman CBE. On arrival, you’ll receive a beautifully illustrated map as well as an audio tour, so that you can listen along to Roy Strong as you explore the gardens at your own pace.
It’s known as a uniquely autobiographical garden, inspired by the Arts & Crafts movement. There’s so much to see at every turn. We love the silver jubilee garden, spring garden, rose garden, the Christmas orchard and serpentine walk.
The Laskett isn’t open every day so do check their website prior to visiting.

Day 5
For your final day, we recommend The Garden of the Wind (7.3 miles) which bills itself as ‘a modern garden in a surprising setting.’
The name is inspired by the gardens’ open aspect to the Black Mountains and the westerly winds which have to be endured. As you can imagine, at 600ft above sea level, the views are spectacular, looking out over the Black Mountains from the Skirrid to Black Hill.
The design of the gardens makes the most of these views with sculpture from British and continental makers throughout. There’s also plenty of places to sit and reflect on the tranquillity.
Please book your visit in advance as The Garden of the Wind is open for private visits by appointment only.