Autumn is almost upon us and we are fast approaching the end of the open garden season. That said, we still have a few fabulous Sussex gardens to visit through September. So, for the penultimate time this year, Geoff Stonebanks, Publicity Officer for the National Garden Scheme in East & Mid Sussex has curated a list of gardens to see across the county, in conjunction with his counterpart in West Sussex, Kate Harrison. Let’s hope the weather holds so visitors can enjoy plenty of tea and cake along the way. Enjoy your garden visiting!
Bates Green Garden, Tye Hill Road, Arlington, BN26 6SH.
Open Sunday 29th September from 10.30 am to 4 pm with entry £7 and children £3. Pre-booking is essential.
This plantswoman’s tranquil garden provides interest through the seasons. A woodland garden has been created around a majestic oak tree. The middle garden is colour themed and the courtyard gardens are filled with seasonal container displays. The front garden is an autumn joy with coloured stems and leaves of cornus and salix. Wander by the wildlife pond and through the wildflower meadow. The whole site is gardened for nature and wildlife. Autumn guests can enjoy spotting the abundant fungi.
Parsonage Farm, Kirdford, near Billingshurst, RH14 0NH.
Sunday 8th September 2 pm to 6 pm, entry £8, children free.
This is a major garden in a beautiful setting, developed over 30 years with a strong fruit theme and many unusual plants. It is formally laid out on a grand scale with long vistas. See the 18th century walled garden with borders in apricot, orange, scarlet and crimson. Amble along the topiary walk, pleached lime allée and tulip tree avenue to see rose borders and a vegetable garden with trained fruit. Enjoy the interesting turf amphitheatre, see autumn shrubbery, yew cloisters and jungle walk.
King John’s Lodge, Sheepstreet Lane, Etchingham, TN19 7AZ.
Saturday 14th September from 10 am to 5 pm with entry £5 and children free.
This is a 4-acre romantic garden for all seasons and has been an ongoing family project since 1987, with new areas completed in 2020. From the eclectic shop, nursery and tearoom, stroll past a wildlife pond through the orchard with bulbs, meadow, rose walk and fruit according to the season. The historic house has a broad lawn, a fountain, herbaceous border, pond and ha-ha. Explore the secret woodland with renovated pond and admire majestic trees and the 4-acre meadows.
Ashling Park Estate, West Ashling, Chichester, PO18 9DJ.
Open both Wednesday 11th and Wednesday 18th September from 10 am to 11.30 am with entry £8. Pre-booking is essential.
Join a truly fascinating vineyard tour with wine tasting that starts promptly at 10 am. First created in the 19th century, Ashling Park was cited on the Tithe map and has had a new lease of life when a vineyard was planted in 2017. Grapes grown are Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunièr, Chardonnay and Bacchus varieties. See the chef’s kitchen garden and beehives.
Sussex Prairies, Morlands Farm, Wheatsheaf Road, Henfield, BN5 9AT.
Open for NGS on Sunday 8th September from 1 pm to 5 pm with entry £12 and children £6.
Wander through an exciting prairie garden of approx 8 acres, planted in the naturalistic style using 60,000 plants and over 1,600 different varieties. A colourful garden featuring a huge variety of unusual ornamental grasses. Expect layers of colour, texture and architectural splendour. The plot is surrounded by mature oak trees with views of Chanctonbury Ring and Devil’s Dyke on the South Downs. See the permanent sculpture collection and exhibited sculpture throughout the season. Rare breed sheep and pigs to see too and a tropical entrance garden.
Fairlight Hall, Martineau Lane, Hastings, TN35 5DR.
Thursday 19th September from 10 am to 4 pm, entry £10 and children free.
Visit this restored, stunning garden in East Sussex. The formal gardens extend over 9 acres and surround the Victorian Gothic mansion and feature semitropical woodland avenues, a huge contemporary walled garden with amphitheatre and two 110 metre perennial borders above and below the ha-ha, with far-reaching views across Rye Bay. Home-made preserves, vegetables and cut flowers for sale.
Langley Gardens Eastbourne, BN23 6DD.
Sunday 8th September from 1 pm to 5 pm with entry £5.
Sadly, Oldfield Road opening has had to be cancelled, leaving 36 Jellicoe Close and 16 Hardy Drive to open as a pair, with a reduced entrance fee. There are no refreshments available but there are local cafés nearby. The gardens are both developed on land reclaimed from the sea. 36 Jellicoe Close has a front and rear garden created over the past 5 years on shingle/beach reclaimed land and is a Mediterranean, cottage-style garden with wildlife, ecology and sustainability at its heart, plus a potter’s studio. 16 Hardy Drive is a small urban back garden packed with plants dominated by a large palm tree and full borders.
Withypitts Dahlias, Pump Street, off Paddockhurst Road, Turners Hill, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 4SF.
Tuesday 10th September from 11 am to 4 pm with entry £15. Pre-booking essential.
Withypitts Dahlias have become renowned country wide as the grower of the highest quality farmed, cut flower dahlias in the UK. Used by the UK’s leading event florists to adorn prestigious venues throughout the country. Join the team for a talk and tour, full of fun tips and techniques to help you get the very best from your dahlias as well as a background of Withypitts Dahlia, the origins of dahlias and how they grow beautiful, premium, quality blooms on a commercial scale. The talks are interactive so either have your questions ready or be ready to interrupt! After the tour and Q&A have a look around, as the dahlias will be at their peak and be putting on a fantastic and colourful display.
We hope you enjoy your visits! Full details on all the gardens can be found at www.ngs.org.uk
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