Exploring the garden at Packwood

A view through a gate to the gardens in autumn at Packwood, Warwickshire — Through the gate to the autumn gardens at Packwood | © National Trust/Abi Chandler

“A house to dream of; a garden to dream in.” So wrote a visitor to Packwood in the 1930s. Wander around the garden, and a bit further afield to find out how true that comment is. Discover herbaceous borders, wildflower meadows and a beautiful orchard. Don’t miss the bountiful kitchen garden and admire the magnificent yew trees.

Autumn highlights

As the leaves on the trees are slowly starting to change colour and the last of the summer roses have lost their heady scent and delicate colour the garden team at Packwood turn their attention towards the shorter days and cooler evenings of autumn. We may have left summer behind but there’s still a whole host of beautiful things to see in the gardens.

When you head through the gates to the house this autumn make sure you take a look at the borders either side which are filled with ‘glow in the dark’ asters which shine out from beyond their dark tinted leaves and the majestic pampas grass with its tall feathery white flower plumes which stand out against the dark red of the brick.

Flanking the entrance to the house you will see an abundance of bright yellow berries from the Asian firethorn and surrounding the entrance to the south court you will see the beautiful tea rose which flowers from spring until the first frost. The herbaceous borders are full of Michaelmas daisies which have lovely bright lavender flowers and the raised terrace borders are bursting with salvias with colours ranging from rich reds to the deepest pinks.

A couple pushing a pram in the Kitchen Garden at Packwood House, Warwickshire — Family in the kitchen garden at Packwood House | © National Trust Images/Annapurna Mellor

Around the house

The gardens near the house were laid out in the 1630s by John Fetherstone, during the reign of Kings Charles I and II, hence its name – the Carolean Garden. The main features are:

The Yellow Border. The yellow border is a real showstopper from late spring and is an excellent example of Packwood’s ‘mingled style’. Alongside the blaze of flowers, look out for the two-storey brick gazebo begun in the 1660s and a horizontal heating flue with a little fireplace which was used to protect the fruit trees that once grew there.
The Double Borders flank the path leading from the house to the Yew Garden. Full of hellebores from late winter, pulmonaria from spring and eventually, Packwood’s famous alliums.
The Raised Terrace offers views back towards the house. In Graham Baron Ash’s time it was used as a stage for outdoor theatre performances with the audience sitting on the lawn below.

Not strictly part of the Carolean Garden, the Sunken Garden, just across the south lawn, is a typical Arts and Crafts creation. Its building was interrupted by wartime austerity in 1941, but it has now been completed as a dry garden with exotic desert plants.

The Yew Garden

According to legend, the yew trees at Packwood represent the ‘Sermon on the Mount’ and are over 350 years old. Walk up the centre of the garden past the multitude of ‘figures’ to reach the grand finale of Packwood’s formal garden: the spiral mount and its imposing ‘master’ yew. Follow the spiral path up the mount to get the best view of Packwood's famous Yew Garden.

There's a lot more information about the Yew Garden here

Further afield

Just a short walk away, you will find:

The Kitchen Garden has been recreated as it might have been in the 1700s when the Fetherstone family owned Packwood. Under the Victorians, kitchen gardens were a combination of beauty and commodity, providing abundant resources including less familiar herbs and flowers which grew amongst the vegetables. You can sample some of the produce in our Garden Kitchen Café.
The Memorial Orchard contains a variety of fruit trees, many planted in memory of lost loved ones. Apples, pears, damsons, quinces, plums, cherries and medlars of local varieties help to supply the Garden Kitchen Café.
Packwood’s Meadows surround the house. One of the oldest continuously maintained meadows, over 300 years old, is located to the south-east and south-west of Packwood Lane in what is known as the ‘Outer Court’.

You can find out more about Packwood’s gardens, and how the garden team are looking after them by clicking here.

A group of pumpkins grown in the Kitchen Garden at Packwood, Warwickshire — A fine crop of pumpkins from the Kitchen Garden | © National Trust/Abi Chandler

Family fun in the garden

There are lots of opportunities for family fun in the great outdoors at Packwood, from bird spotting to discovering wild animals. As you explore Packwood, pick up a seasonal spotter sheets to see how many signs of the season you can spot and tick them off along the way.