When landscape gardener Lancelot 'Capability' Brown was invited to work in Ireland, he famously replied: "I haven't finished England yet." From the historical and modern experimental planting at Wisley to the ornamental splendour of the Savill Gardens you can chose to just enjoy the wonderful displays or make the most of the incredible learning opportunities to replicate in your own garden.
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Founded more than 100 years ago, Wisley is the oldest and most diverse of the four RHS gardens and its collections include cultivated plants of national significance. What makes it particularly special is the fascinating blend of historical and modern experimental planting.
The 'original Wisley', known as Oakwood, still exists today, very much as it did when George Fergusson Wilson first started gardening on the site in the late 19th century. Yet the garden is also continually evolving.
George was all about experimentation, and to this day Wisley hosts a rolling programme of plant trials, which means the garden and its plant collections are constantly updated and developed.
Wisley is also home to a team of scientists, who are hard at work researching a whole range of horticultural issues that affect our everyday lives.
Full of inspiration for gardeners, with over 30,000 plant varieties, 200 acres and countless different styles, the gardens at RHS Garden Wisley are a delight throughout the year.
Enjoy a 'behind the scenes tour' of Wisley Laboratory's, the tour opens up areas of the iconic Wisley Laboratory building which are not accessible to the public. Your tour begins in the grand entrance of the laboratory building for an introduction to its history and uses today. As you are guided through the Science Library, Entomology, Pathology and Botany departments you will be met by a member of the team who will share more of the work they do to support the charitable remit of the RHS.
We can also arrange a wonderful picnic within your favourite spot of the garden.
The 15th century Manor House was altered by Ernest Newton in 1903-1905 for Charles
Holme, founder of the leading Arts and Crafts magazine The Studio. The garden was designed and planted in 1908 and 1909 by Gertrude Jekyll.
This is the most accurately and fully restored of her gardens. The garden consists of a wild garden where grass paths run amongst rambling roses, shrubs and tress to a planted pond.
The formal garden holds herbaceous borders with colours running from cool colours at either end to hot in the centre, a rose lawn, planted drystone walls,
bowing and tennis lawns. This is surrounded by a nuttery, kitchen garden, and orchard with pergolas and arbours.
The Savill Garden is a place of constant discovery, and of interlocking gardens, containing distinctive areas such as Spring Wood, The Summer Wood, The Hidden Gardens,
The Summer Gardens, The Glades, Autumn Wood, The Azalea Walks and The New Zealand Garden.
The Savill Garden mixes and exotic species and has bred many important garden hybrids.
Each 'garden with a garden' has its own attractions, and the gardens are ever-changing with every season bringing new colour and interest to delight the visitor.
The Rose Garden takes a fresh and contemporary approach to displaying roses. The design creates an intense sensory experience with roses especially chosen
for their scent, strong colours and repeat flowering. Visitors enjoy the perfume at its best, together with stunning views, from a walk away which
appears to 'float' above the Rose Garden.
The Sheffield Gardens are a horticultural work of art, formed through centuries of landscape design, with influences of 'Capability' Brown and Humphry Repton. Four lakes form the heart of the garden, with paths circulating through the glades and wooded areas surrounding them.
Each owner has left their impression, which can still be seen today in the layout of the lakes, the construction of Pulham Falls, the planting of Palm Walk and the many different tree and shrub specifies from around the world. Winter brings misty mornings and frosty trees to give the garden a timeless, sculptural beauty.
Water has always been a key element of the landscape at Sheffield Park and their five lakes have become an iconic feature, their hand-dug, clay-lined construction creates dramatic reflections of the carefully planned planting that surrounds them. The Pulham Falls, which connect Ten Foot Pond and Middle Lake, were commissioned by the 3rd Earl of Sheffield and installed between 1882 and 1885 by Pulham and Son.
The vast collection of trees and larges shrubs are planted to create vistas that enhance the feeling of scale and grandeur of the property. The garden
has received a Grade I listing and holds the national collection of Ghent Azaleas.
