Mount Stuart
Mount Stuart Trust, Mount Stuart, Isle of Bute, PA20 9LR
Mount Stuart’s 300-acre gardens and grounds are home to a spectacular botanic collection of native and exotic flora, which give life to several gardens with distinct personalities, each set against the dramatic backdrop of the Firth of Clyde. These include a mature Victorian pinetum, a two-acre Rock Garden, a 'Wee Garden’ of five acres, and a Kitchen Garden.
The Rock Garden was designed by the English landscape architect Thomas H Mawson in the late 1890s and features his trademark water features, which are considered an ingenious feat of Victorian engineering.
The Wee Garden, a quintessentially secret garden for solitude and a few moments of reflection, is planted with tender exotics from Australia and New Zealand and is a must-see corner of the grounds.
The Kitchen Garden was redesigned by the late Lord Bute with help from Rosemary Verey. It has a variety of vegetables, fruits and flowers and is home to a happy company of chickens and bees. Here blossoms the fabulous David Austin new English rose.
As one of Scotland’s great gardens, Mount Stuart boasts important botanical specimens and champion rhododendrons that grow alongside plants endangered in their native habitats, including 16 national champion trees. Its unique designed landscape hosts a further 80 county champion trees, each finding their home at Mount Stuart. Add in the relics of an 18th century landscape, a tropical greenhouse, acres of seasonal bulb displays of daffodils and bluebells, established rhododendrons and some recent improvements by James Alexander-Sinclair, and you have the measure of a long and fascinating visit. Recent restoration developments, path upgrades and continued improvements within the Kitchen Garden, Rock Garden and Wee Garden provide fresh interest and encourage exploration of the grounds.
Website: www.mountstuart.com
Telephone: 01700 503877
Opening times: 10am – 6pm until 28th October, 10am – 4pm from 29th October to 21st December. On some dates throughout the year Mount Stuart may close early or open late due to private events – please check the website before visiting.
Admission costs: House & garden entry fee: Adults £13, Children £7.50, Concession £11, Family £39 (2 adults, 3 children). Free entry to the gardens for RHS, HHA & ASVA members.
Garden of the Week is in association with Discover Scottish Gardens. For more information, advice and day-out ideas, visit discoverscottishgardens.org
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