The 5 best gardens to visit during your stay in North Devon

Marwood Hill Gardens is a wonderfully unique private garden located only 4 miles outside of Barnstaple in North Devon. The gardens cover 20 acres, housing three lakes and an impressive collection of plants, shrubs, and trees. And the grounds make for a relaxing and tranquil atmosphere, perfect for those looking to escape from the bustling city and indulge in a moment of peace in nature. Visitors can also enjoy a trip to the Garden Tea Room, where they can enjoy a range of homemade cakes and treats.

The rolling hills of the North Devon countryside provide a stunning backdrop to the gardens, making it the perfect place to enjoy the natural beauty and lush vegetation while taking in the views across the lakes. The combination of the beautiful surroundings and the diverse selection of plants make Marwood Hill Gardens a great garden to visit in North Devon.

Clovelly Court Gardens is one of the best gardens to visit in North Devon due to its historical significance, beautiful landscape, and abundance of plant life. The gardens are situated in a sheltered part of the North Devon coastline, which means that the plants are usually a month ahead of the rest of the country in terms of seasons.

The walled gardens, protected from the winds and bordered by an avenue of lime trees, feature neat and carefully tended beds filled with various herbs, flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Within the Victorian glasshouses, you can find apricots, peaches, aubergines, nectarines, peppers, chillies, cucumbers, tomatoes, melons, grapes, lemons, and figs ripening in the warmth. Outside, the garden produce is wholesome and tasty, including apples, pears, quinces, medlars, soft fruit, and two mulberry trees. The gardens are also a big part of the village’s success, as the produce is supplied to the local pubs. Not only are the gardens good for the local area, but they are also a stunning sight to behold. This is shown by the village’s success in the South West region of the RHS Britain in Bloom competition.

Clovelly Gardens is a must-see for anyone visiting North Devon and is an excellent opportunity to experience a piece of history and admire the beauty of nature.

RHS Rosemoor Gardens is a fantastic place to visit, offering stunning views and a wide variety of activities to suit any taste. The 65 acres of beautiful gardens and natural landscapes include a woodland garden, a fruit and veg garden, a cottage garden, a stone garden, a stumpery, and a winter garden, amongst other attractions.

Visitors can take a romantic stroll through the Rose Garden, which features over 2,000 varieties of roses, or explore the play areas, meadows and Bicentenary Arboretum. There are also plenty of events to participate in, including demonstrations and talks, as well as children’s activities.

Furthermore, the award-winning Garden Kitchen serves delicious food grown in the garden, so you can truly escape the world and enjoy nature with a delightful meal. With so many attractions and activities, RHS Rosemoor Gardens makes for a great day out in North Devon.

Hartland Abbey is a stunning estate situated in stunning North Devon, making it the perfect garden to visit. The 12th-century estate has been lovingly maintained over the centuries and offers visitors beautiful, scenic gardens full of incredible flora and fauna

The Abbey Garden and Elizabethan Garden are particularly delightful, with various buds and bulbs, including tulips and wildflowers, and visitors can also enjoy long walks along the winding paths in the Baronet’s Bog Garden and the ‘Ladies Walk’ through woodlands to the 18th century Walled Gardens.

The beautiful walled and woodland gardens provide the perfect place to while away the day, and from the house, it’s just a mile’s walk to the Atlantic Coast through a wild and rugged route. Hartland Abbey is truly a wonderful garden to visit in North Devon, combining beauty, peace and history in one package.

Tapely Park is renowned for its breathtaking beauty, making it one of the best gardens to visit in the area. Situated high on a hill overlooking the River Torridge, Tapely Park is a grand house estate with stunning views of the North Devon coastline. The grounds feature an Italian terrace, a Victorian lake, ponds, old woodlands and fields where custodian Hector Christie’s herd of highland cattle graze. The house itself is not open to the public, but visitors are welcome to explore the grounds and bring a picnic or enjoy a cream tea or snack in the tea rooms.

Tapely Park also boasts one of the UK’s oldest permaculture gardens, combining classic Italian sculpted gardens with sustainability. Furthermore, the Tearooms offer delicious food and drinks made with fresh produce from the walled gardens. With so much to explore, Tapely Park Gardens is an enchanting mix of old and new gardening philosophies and is a must-see destination for any visitor to North Devon.