Discover more at Hardwick
Find out when Hardwick is open, how to get here, the things to see and do and more.
Hardwick's historic garden bursts with colour no matter the season and it is the perfect place for a spot of calm. Discover the garden highlights to look out for on your visit.
Summer is a colourful and fragrant time in Hardwick's historic gardens. The gardening team have been working hard to bring on the tasty produce used daily in the restaurant, and they make the perfect place to relax.
Working your way along the paths in the West Court you'll pass a spectrum of colour provided by annuals.
Starting from the gatehouse with white flowers, to the deep reds and purples by the house. It was here that the famous Gertrude Jekyll helped influence the planting.
At every turn you'll likely find your senses stirred by the palette of summer colour throughout Hardwick's historic gardens; pops from flowers, grasses, trees and shrubs, coupled with the scent of freshly cut grass and tended blooms, and the gentle hum of insects.
Vibrant dahlias replace tulips in the Orchard flower borders. Perennials and annuals are spurred on in the warmth to provide colour in the gardens and cut flowers for the Hall, holiday cottages and restaurant, until the autumn.
Duchess Evelyn (the last Lady of Hardwick) helped to create what you see today in the East Court. In the 1950s she introduced shrub roses into the borders, with their muted, pastel shades and delicious scent.
Duchess Evelyn’s hybrid musk roses, flanked by yew buttresses, flower repeatedly in the East Court from mid-June to November.
The West Court borders, viewed from the Gatehouse, frame the Hall with fresh, vibrant colours, deepening and warming as they approach the Hall, then intensifying as we move into autumn.
Close-clipped, striped lawns provide a cooler and central platform to sit and take it all in.
Wander through the Herb Garden and take in the fragrances, as the scent intensifies with heat and rainfall. The herb garden becomes a destination for bees from miles around; nectar abounds with every conceivable culinary and medicinal taste available.
The herb garden – one of the finest in the country – grows both culinary and medicinal herbs, which would have been used to help cure or soothe ailments in Bess of Hardwick's time.
Damsons, plums and greengages ripen to feed wasps and hornets, later butterflies. They’ll be carefully picked and for sale in the shop. Vegetables and herbs are grown and freshly picked for use in the Great Barn restaurant.
The restaurant chef takes his share of fresh mint, rosemary, horseradish, thyme, and nasturtium flowers for summer specials too. You may even meet him in the garden, as he selects ingredients for his next recipe.
Swallows, first seen in spring, nest amongst the stonework away from indigenous song birds in their hedges, trees and tree boxes. Spot them as they dart across the South and East Courts.
If you’re coming to one of the summer cinema nights, you may also see the bats fly from buildings and hollows in the tall tree canopies that surround the gardens in early evening, taking moths and insects above the long wild grasses in the Ornamental Orchard and Nuttery.
Take time to relax in one of the deckchairs on the south lawn. Why not bring a book and stay for the afternoon? Or enjoy the longer summer days with a picnic on the lawn, surrounded by the roses’ delicate fragrance and soft pastel colours decorating the borders.
The garden is cared for and managed by a team of four gardeners, with the help of a trusty team of volunteers. They are keen to share their knowledge, so feel free to ask them a question if you see them.
Find out when Hardwick is open, how to get here, the things to see and do and more.
Visit Hardwick's parkland to enjoy stunning scenery and a wide range of walking routes and wildlife this season.
Hardwick Hall is the legacy of a woman who had the vision, wealth and sheer audacity to commission a house that shouts innovation from the rooftops.
Read how wealth, power and ambition drove Bess of Hardwick to build her grand design, filled with a treasure trove of fine furnishings that can still be seen at the Hall today.
Enjoy tasty food and drink in the Great Barn restaurant or browse in the gift shop. Both are located within a historic setting at Hardwick.
Hardwick is a three pawprint rated place, and offers plenty of opportunities for bounding, jumping and sniffing for dogs. With acres to explore, come and join us for a wander.
As one of the finest Elizabethan buildings in the country, Hardwick Hall is a perfect place for group visits.
From 18th-century water gardens and Arts and Crafts landscapes to intimate woodland gardens, there are so many places to discover.
Discover our gardeners’ top tips so you can make the most of your garden, plot or window box.