insideKENT Magazine Issue 37 - April 2015 | Page 103

DAYSOUT kent's spring gardens Spring is springing, blooms are blooming, and the Garden of England is waking up after its long winter slumber. April is a great time to get out in the seasonal sunshine, visit some of the luscious formal – and informal – gardens of Kent, and drink in the sights and scents of bluebells, cherry blossom, and daffodils. Here are just a few of the highlights from Visit Kent. Castles, Lords and Ladies Sissinghurst Castle Kent has an impressive 180 gardens open to the public, but perhaps the most famous are the stunning grounds of Sissinghurst Castle. Designed by Vita-Sackville West, the series of scent-and flower-filled outdoor ‘rooms’ are framed by warm, weathered walls and crowned by an iconic tower. Sissinghurst has inspired many green-fingered visitors over the years, and is noted as one of the most famous gardens in the world. www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sissinghurst-castle-garden Quex Garden Formal lawns, herbaceous borders, exotic trees, ponds, listed statues, woodland walks and a Victorian Walled Garden await visitors at Quex Gardens, where extensive restoration work continues to bring the gardens back to their former glory. Wander through the Victorian Walled Garden and explore the greenhouses and rare cucumber pit. Quex Park also has its own maize maze in the summer months, and The Secret Garden Centre. www.quexpark.co.uk Kent's historic estates and castles dazzle visitors from the outside, as well as from within. Hever Castle (www.hevercastle.co.uk) boasts 125 acres of stunning gardens that were voted the southeast's most romantic by BBC Gardeners' World – they even have their own rose, launched by Dame Judi Dench. Goodnestone Park Gardens Literature lovers shouldn’t miss a trip to the beautiful Goodnestone Park Gardens, where Jane Austen frequently walked whilst visiting her sister-in-law. An all-year-round treat, visit the 14 tranquil acres in early spring and delight in a profusion of snowdrops. www.goodnestoneparkgardens.co.uk Brogdale Collections It's no wonder that Henry VIII dubbed our county the Garden of England after sampling a bowl of Kentish cherries. Delicious to say the least, why not explore the grounds of the National Fruit Collection at Brogdale, Faversham, and see the 4,000 varieties of fruit trees in blossom this spring? Brogdale offers orchard tours, plus fresh apple and pear juice tastings. www.brogdalecollections.co.uk The grounds at nearby Penshurst Place (www.penshurstplace.com) contain an 11-acre formal walled garden, which keeps faithfully to its 16th-century design. A one-mile yew hedge adds to the appeal, creating a series of seasonal ‘rooms’. Riverhill Himalayan Gardens Riverhill, near Sevenoaks, is a listed hillside garden that the whole family can enjoy. The gardens boast carpets of bluebells in the woodland during early spring, a spectacular array of rhododendrons and azaleas as the season continues, and magnificent views overlooking the Weald of Kent. The recently refurbished Walled Ga