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A walk in The Valley Gardens is a voyage of constant discovery. The area has been continuously planted since the middle of the eighteenth century, and still contains some isolated clumps of native oak, beech, sweet chestnut and Scots pine, planted in the early 1700s. Further developed by Sir Eric Savill and Hope Findlay in the 1940s, and inspired partly by the garden’s structure of parallel valleys, it was decided to plant whole collections of particular plant groups together. Today, The Valley Gardens, with The Savill Garden, provide a home to National Collections of Magnolia, Mahonia, Pernettya, Rhododendron Species, Glenn Dale azaleas, hardy ferns, Ilex and Dwarf conifers. The most famous of the valleys is the Punch Bowl, a natural amphitheatre of multicoloured azaleas. In April and early May, there are few more spectacular garden views in the British Isles. But every season has its attractions: great sweeps of daffodils below the Pinetum and chalices of magnolia flowers arrive in Spring. Fresh greens of early summer beckon the cool blues and whites of the hydrangeas. Autumn brings a stunning array of vibrant colours as the leaves of deciduous trees fall, and in winter many of the conifers in the Heather Garden turn steely blue in response to frosty conditions |
