Gardens in Wales
National Botanic Garden
If you are interested in plants and would like to stroll through attractively landscaped gardens during your holiday, you can't miss a visit to the National Botanic Garden in South Wales. However, you should bring some time and good footwear as the park is approximately 600-acre. In addition to extensive explorations of the garden, you can also focus on specific topics, of which there are many. For example, this botanical garden has an apothecary garden, a Japanese garden, a wild garden and a garden of Welsh plants from various regions of Wales. The National Botanic Garden's dome-shaped glass greenhouse is the largest cantilever glasshouse in the world and home to the largest collection of Mediterranean plants in the northern hemisphere.
All Image Credits: VisitWales
Llanerchaeron
The impressive gardens of the Llanerchaeron estate used to be part of a late 18th-century villa, located in the southwestern part of Wales, not far from the coast. Today, there is an organic farm with 19th century buildings on the property. The walled gardens are a mixture of pleasure and vegetable gardens. In addition to appealing plantings you will find many herbs and vegetables. There are also a variety of fruit trees, some over 200 years old. The fruits of these trees and many other products, all produced organically, can be bought in the in-house shop. Along the carefully landscaped park and on the extensive open spaces you can take beautiful walks. A highlight for children are the different animals of the farm, especially the cows, pigs and sheep.
Portmeirion Gardens
The Portmeirion Gardens and Portmeirion itself are a major attraction in Wales. Created by Welsh architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis between 1925 and 1975, Portmeirion sits above the cliffs of Cardigan Bay in northwest Wales near Snowdonia National Park. Thanks to the mild climate in this region, there are hardly any frosts in winter and it is thus possible to integrate more frost-sensitive plants in the gardens of the Italian-style village. In addition to attractive formal plantings, there are sprawling wooded areas where you will encounter more unusual trees such as coastal sequoias, New Zealand club lilies, palm trees and tree ferns. There are two highlights in spring: At Easter you can admire the magnolia blossom and in May the flowers of the numerous rhododendrons and azaleas.
Bodnant Garden
Bodnant Garden is one of the best known and most popular gardens in Wales. It was founded in 1874 and is located near the town of Conwy in North Wales. The approximately 32-hectare complex is divided into two areas: The upper part of the garden consists of formally landscaped terraced gardens and precisely structured lawns. The lower part is called "The Dell" and is clearly "wilder" which has its own charm. An absolute highlight for those who have the opportunity to visit Bodnant Garden in May or June is the blooming Laburnum Arch, with its 55 meters making it the longest in Britain. If you want to relax after all the walking, you can either visit one of the two restaurants in the garden or have a picnic on one of the spacious lawns.
