With Easter behind us and summer to look forward to, Geoff Stonebanks, Publicity Officer for the National Garden Scheme in East and Mid Sussex, tempts us out to see beautiful gardens across the county through May, with this selection of gardens to visit, curated with his colleague in West Sussex, Kate Harrison. Full details on all the gardens can be found at www.ngs.org.uk
STANLEY FARM, Highfield Lane, Liphook, GU30 7LW
Open Bank Holiday 4th from midday to 5 pm with entry £6
A 1-acre garden, created over the last 15 years around an old West Sussex farmhouse, sitting in the midst of its own fields and woods. The formal garden includes a kitchen garden with heated glasshouse, orchard, espaliered wall trained fruit, lawn with ha-ha and cutting garden. A motley assortment of animals, including sheep, donkeys, chickens, ducks and geese. Bluebells flourish in the woods, so feel free to bring dogs and a picnic, and take a walk after visiting the gardens.
FOREST RIDGE Paddockhurst Lane, Balcombe, RH17 6QZ
Open Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th from 2 pm to 5 pm with entry £6.50
A charming 4½ acre Victorian garden with far-reaching views, boasting the oldest Atlantic Cedar in Sussex. The owners themselves are undertaking a major restoration: felling, planting, and redesigning areas. The garden features both formal and informal planting, a woodland dell, and a mini arboretum. Azaleas, rhododendrons, and camellias abound, including rare and unusual species. This is a garden to watch in the coming years as new plantings mature and redesigned areas flourish. A garden to explore.
HAMMERWOOD HOUSE, Iping, Midhurst, GU29 0PF
Open Sunday 10th from 1pm to 5 pm with entry £7
A large south facing garden with many mature shrubs, including camellias, rhododendrons, and azaleas. An arboretum with a variety of flowering and fruit trees. Old yew and beech hedges give a certain amount of formality to this traditional English garden. Tea on the terrace is a must, with the most beautiful view of the South Downs. For the more energetic, there is a woodland walk.
LEGSHEATH FARM, Legsheath Lane, nr Forest Row, Sussex, RH19 4JN
Open Sunday 10th from 1.30 pm to 4.30 pm with entry £10
Legsheath was first mentioned in Duchy of Lancaster records in 1545. It was associated with the role of Master of the Ashdown Forest. Set high in the Weald, with far-reaching views of East Grinstead and Weirwood Reservoir. The garden covers 11 acres, with a spring-fed stream feeding ponds. There is a magnificent davidia, rare shrubs, embothrium, and many different varieties of meconopsis and abutilo.
RAPKYNS NURSERY, Street End Lane, Broad Oak, Heathfield, TN21 8UB
Open Wednesday 13th from 11 am to 4 pm with entry £15 with pre-booking essential and two hour timed slots at 11 am & 2 pm
The nursery has been growing plants in an idyllic country setting for over 30 years, and during that time have amassed an extensive range, including a large collection of salvias. Join the owner for a talk about the nursery and discover more about how they grow and propagate their beautiful plants, with a chance to learn some of their secrets. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions about all things gardening.
BUMBLE FARM, Drungewick Lane, Loxwood, Billingshurst, RH14 0RS
Open Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th from 2 pm to 5 pm with entry £6
A delightful large country garden, passionately and imaginatively created by an enthusiastic owner over the past 20 years. The garden features a series of circular lawns, surrounded by borders filled with mass drift and repeat planting of harmonious perennials, roses, shrubs, and more. A newly developed white garden, a wisteria covered pergola, a kitchen and cutting garden, fountains, and various seating areas.
PIGEON MEAD HOUSE, Earnley Manor Close, Earnley, Chichester, PO20 7JQ
Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th from 11 am to 4 pm with entry £6, with pre booking essential
A ⅓ acre plot about ¾ mile from the coast. See the south facing rear garden with a formal structure and informal mixed planting. Features include a greenhouse, a formal lawn surrounded by beds and espaliered crab apples, a small labyrinth, and a shaded area. It’s a family friendly space with places to sit and enjoy the garden. The front garden includes a wildlife pond, a small meadow area, and a lovely, established magnolia tree.
BALCOMBE GARDENS, Oldlands Avenue, RH17 6LP
Open Wednesday 20th from midday to 5 pm with combined entry of £7.50
Three quite different, adjacent gardens on an easy walking trail. Winterfield is a long-established plantsman’s garden, full of uncommon shrubs and trees, herbaceous borders, a pond, and a wildlife area. Stumlet has evolved from a ‘work in progress’ garden into a restful and special space, with places to sit and enjoy a little peace, scent, colour, and interesting planting. The Coppice is a garden to watch as it develops over the coming years, transforming from a newly designed and partially planted area into an inspirational space. The areas near the house are already planted, offering a glimpse of the promise to come.
GROVELANDS, Wineham Lane, Wineham, Henfield, BN5 9AW
Open Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th from 10 am to 4.30 pm with entry £8
A South Downs view welcomes you to this rural garden set in over an acre in the hamlet of Wineham. Created and developed by local landscape designer Sue McLaughlin and the owners, it is designed to delight throughout the seasons. Features inc mixed borders, mature shrubs and orchard. A vegetable garden with a greenhouse and a pond, hides behind a tall, clipped hornbeam hedge.
SIENNA WOOD, Coombe Hill Road, East Grinstead, RH19 4LY
Sunday 10th from 1 pm to 4.30 pm with entry £7
Explore this beautiful 4½ acre garden with picturesque lakeside walk and 6 acre ancient woodland. Start at the herbaceous borders surrounding the croquet lawn, through the formal rose garden to the lawns and summer borders stopping at the new Italian terrace, through the arboretum to the lake and waterfall and back past the exotic border, orchard and vegetable garden. Many unusual trees and shrubs. Possible sighting of wild deer inc white deer. Many interesting statues.
SKYSCAPE, 46 Ainsworth Avenue, Ovingdean, Brighton, BN2 7BG
Open Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st from 1 pm to 5 pm with entry £5
A 250ft south facing rear garden on a sloping site with fantastic views of the South Downs and the sea. The garden has been created by the owners over the past 13 years and features an orchard, flower beds, wildlife ponds, and planting with bees and wildlife in mind.
SEAFORD GARDENS, Signed north and south of A259
5 gardens open Sunday 31st from midday to 5 pm with combined entry £6
This is not a walking trail although some gardens are close to each other:
- 34 CHYNGTON ROAD, BN25 4HP.
- COSY COTTAGE, 69 Firle Road, BN25 2JA.
- LAVENDER COTTAGE, 69 Steyne Road, BN25 1QH. (Pictured)
- 129 PRINCESS DRIVE, BN25 2QT.
- WHITEHOUSE, 130 Firle Road, BN25 2JD.
For full garden descriptions and details, visit www.ngs.org.uk. Each garden offers its own unique charm, with a huge range of different planting styles, making this a truly inspiring group of gardens to visit. Enjoy tea, plants, and artwork for sale at various gardens. Tickets and maps are available from any participating garden on the day.
Thinking ahead, you could book a visit to see Geoff’s garden through June and July, details below:
DRIFTWOOD, 4 Marine Drive, Bishopstone, Seaford, BN25 2RS
Visits by arrangement 1 June to 2 Aug from individuals up to groups of 25. Entry £7 with optional £3 for garden talk
Introduced by Monty Don on BBC Gardeners’ World in 2016 and again in 2024. In 2024, The Sunday Times said ‘visit this rejigged award-winning plot’. Featured on Channel 4’s George Clarke’s Beautiful Builds in 2025, where research led them to Driftwood as the perfect inspiration for a seaside garden design. A perfect paradise made up of different gardens, each with individuality and creativity.
Check out the 260 5-star reviews on TripAdvisor, with three successive Certificates of Excellence and five consecutive Travellers’ Choice Awards. Enjoy a selection of Geoff’s home-made cakes, all served on vintage china, on trays, in the garden. No WC.
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