Highgrove Grandeur in the Cotswolds
1 Day | £350 per person | 27 May 2025
Highgrove Grandeur in the Cotswolds
We begin at Kemble station where we set out for a day full of horticultural delight. Our first visit takes us to Bradley Court, a garden with historical roots from the early 18th-Century. Extraordinarily deep and wide herbaceous borders surround the gardens croquet lawn whilst other areas allow for self-seeders to carve their own route. Continue to our second visit, a jewel in English gardening, the private gardens of Highgrove where regal ambiance and botanical wonders intertwine. This enchanting garden provides a surreal experience for all nature enthusiasts with a heavy emphasis on King Charles' strong principles of organic gardening.
Day Itinerary
Bradley Court
The garden at Bradley Court today bears a strong resemblance to the historic layout depicted in an engraving by Johannes Kipp of 1707 and published five years later in Sir Robert Atkyns’s Ancient and Present State of Gloucestershire. From the entrance court, to the orchards, an avenue of fastigiate hornbeams, and a hipped-roof garden pavilion, along with the house dating back to 1559, there is much here to recognise.
Highrove
Much has been written and filmed at Highgrove, and whether it is your first visit or a return journey, there are always new elements and planting to take in. Taking inspiration from William Kent’s meandering design at Rousham and the hedged compartments of Lawrence Johnstone’s Hidcote, as well as early guidance from a formidable trio of female gardeners: Miriam Rothschild; Mollie Salisbury and Rosemary Verey, the King has always been intimately involved with its layout. The fifteen acres of gardens have evolved with ideas gleaned from travel, history and horticultural gifts (60 tree ferns from the Australian Monarchist League) as well as amassing two Plant Heritage collections of hostas and beech.
Price: £350
Departure Dates:
27th May 2025
Duration:
1 day
Your Day Includes:
- Transport from and to Kemble Rail Stop.
- Transfers and excursions throughout the Cotswolds by private coach
- Afternoon Champagne tea.
- Services of our Host.
- Visits as listed in the programme.
- Detailed garden notes.
- All entrance fees, taxes, and gratuities for coach drivers and waiters
Tour Lecturers
Marion Mako
After giving up a ‘safe’ job to train as a garden designer, Marion cut her horticultural teeth at the fabulous Special Plants nursery run by Derry Watkins. Following this, she completed an MA in Garden History at the University of Bristol. The historical, architectural and garden knowledge gained from this course has informed, shaped and enriched Marion’s work ever since. As all of Marion’s gardens are a work in progress, her learning and development continues, enhanced by the people she meets through research, tours, talks and design work..
