News from Athelhampton House & Gardens.

Here at Athelhampton House & Gardens, we don't just have the formal gardens laid out for Alfred Carte de Lafontaine by Inigo Thomas. Tucked away to the East is the Edwardian Kitchen Garden at Athelhampton. At an acre in size, it doesn't just contain vegetables: it also contains around 40 apple trees. Some of the heritage apple trees in the Edwardian Kitchen Garden at Athelhampton House & Gardens Many of these trees were planted when the Edwardian Kitchen Garden at Athelhampto

If you want to visit both Athelhampton House & Gardens and Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens this summer, and save money while doing so, now is your opportunity! Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, one of Dorset's top attractions While Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens are known for their exotic planting, winding pathways and thousands of fascinating plants from around the world, Athelhampton's gardens are far more formal, with a historic setting, and more in the way of native species.

Grey skies settled over Athelhampton House & Gardens this evening, bringing the promise of much needed rain that had been forecast all day. After weeks of hot, dry weather, our lawns have taken on their summer golden tones, and the gardens are quietly hoping for a gentle soaking. Just a few miles away, the rain fell, but here the clouds drifted on without a single drop. We’ll keep hoping that the next shower finds its way to Athelhampton. Athelhampton House & Gardens are open

As a historic house, with equally historic gardens, we're particularly keen to protect our heritage at Athelhampton House & Gardens. Sometimes that means preserving things perfectly, as they always have been. At other times, that requires us to make alterations: keeping things the same isn't always the best way to protect them. And sometimes, returning things to the way they once were is impossible. Planting Lavender at Athelhampton House & Gardens Three years ago, we were de

Nearly 200 years ago, the owner of Athelhampton House & Gardens, the fabulously wealthy Catherine Tylney Long, was courted by Robert "Romeo" Coates, an actor famed for his performances as Romeo. This July, come and see Romeo and Juliet performed as outdoor theatre at Athelhampton House & Gardens. Back in the early nineteenth century, Athelhampton House & Gardens were owned by the wealthiest commoner in England: Catherine Tylney Long. As a woman with a fabulously large fortune

A recent visit to Sherbourne Castle, another member of our Dorset Garden Trail, showed off the grounds beautifully. Sherbourne New Castle With its dramatic lake and naturalistic landscaping courtesy of Capability Brown, the grounds give an impression of simply having grown without any outside help or intervention. The natural calmness and harmony of the landscape Brown created belies the reality of the planning and the hard manual labour that had to go into creating the artif

In the current hot weather, a visit to Hardy's Cottage, surrounded by shady woodland, felt appropriate. Another visitor attraction local to Athelhampton, Hardy's Cottage has a very different history. Hardy's Cottage with its Cottage Garden A small cob and thatch building, Hardy was still living here when he wrote Far From the Madding Crowd, a novel that is essentially set in Puddletown and at Athelhampton, though both go by different names in the book. In his descriptions of

The Lion's Mouth Garden at Athelhampton Like much of England, it has been incredibly hot at Athelhampton House & Gardens this May, and one of the warmest spots in our grounds has to be the Lion’s Mouth Garden. Sheltered by old walls and basking in sunshine for most of the day, it becomes a little Mediterranean corner of Dorset. Looking towards the Eucalyptus tree in the Lion's Mouth Garden at Athelhampton Here, heat loving plants thrive, from the silver blue leaves of the Blu

The team at Athelhampton have spent this week getting ready for what is sure to be a busy May bank holiday weekend. The gardens are blooming in the sunshine, and we're generating so much power with our solar panels we're exporting plenty to the grid. Roses blooming at Athelhampton House So, we're now able to do a great deal for anyone who drives an electric vehicle! Solar panels powering the free EV charging at Athelhampton If you visit Athelhampton this weekend, when you go

There's just under a week to go until Athelhampton's Spring Market , and excitement is building as we prepare to welcome 65 incredible stall holders. We have invited a host of Dorset producers, growers and makers to sell their produce on Athelhampton's West lawn. The market is free to attend and is open to all to allow everyone the chance to purchase the finest products Dorset has to offer. The house and gardens will be open as well, though normal admission charges apply. Ath

Being open all year round can be lonely at times, especially when our friends at other historic properties close through the winter. Still, as we move through spring, other Historic Houses are beginning to open up again, giving HHA members and other visitors lots of options for places to visit in Dorset. National Trust and English Heritage locations are also beginning to open back up again. Our closest neighbour, Mapperton, has been open since the first of March, with both th

After the last visitors drift away and the gardens fall quiet, Athelhampton settles into a different kind of stillness. This evening the sun hangs low, catching the warm stone of the Tudor manor and drawing out every detail of its façade. Nearby, the great Cedar of Lebanon stands gently illuminated, its branches holding the last light of the day. A fleeting moment in the gardens at Athelhampton, calm and unhurried, before evening takes hold. And before long, a new day will da

The gardens at Athelhampton are a riot of colour this spring. Over the past year, we have been extending our herbaceous borders, with over 1,000 feet of deep, generous planting, filled with texture, structure and seasonal interest. Along the South Walk, planting follows the spirit of Gertrude Jekyll, with thoughtful combinations designed to evolve beautifully through the months. In the Green Court, the palette shifts to something altogether more vibrant, with fiery reds, glow

With visitor numbers picking up as we move from Winter into Spring, we're becoming increasingly busy. With cruises, tours, and independent travellers, the many international visitors at Athelhampton make up a significant proportion of our guests, exploring the house and gardens. While many are able to speak English in addition to their native tongue, there are certain nuances of language that make it worth everyone's while to have our visitor interpretation translated. Our sh

With the Easter Holidays in full swing, and Easter less than a week away, many historic houses and other visitor attractions in Dorset and around the country have an Easter Trail, often featuring rabbits, eggs, dinosaurs and other chocolatey goodness. It's a crowded market and, truth be told, there would be plenty of space for Athelhampton's Easter Trail in over 1000 feet of our herbaceous borders. However, our Easter Trail is non-existent. While we could try to keep up with

As the drizzle settled over Athelhampton today, our gardening team decided that getting even wetter wouldn't hurt. Across the eight ponds and fountains in Athelhampton's formal historic gardens, there is always work to be done. The water flowing through them is sourced from the River Piddle, a natural chalk stream, and after running through Athelhampton's system it returns to the river. Keeping the water clean and alive means that all our ponds and fountains have to be care

Carefully edging the pond at the Great Court As we move towards Spring, the Great Court Garden at Athelhampton begins to feel quietly enchanted under an unbroken blue sky. The fountain catches the late afternoon sun, its water sparkling and scattering light, while the tall yew pyramids cast long, graceful shadows across the lawns. With visitors welcomed throughout the year, we have no hurried reopening as the seasons turn. Instead, as Winter turns to Spring, the rhythm of the

Beautiful Magnolia flowers beginning to open in the sunshine With the quiet return of Spring to Athelhampton, the magnolia trees are beginning to flower. Their delicate petals unfolding in soft shades of blush and cream against the cool Dorset air, these trees only flower for a few brief weeks each year. In this short time, they bring a moment of understated beauty to the gardens in advance of the fuller colours of spring. Magnolia flowers against the blue Dorset sky Wander t

With the arrival of Spring, the gardens at Athelhampton begin to stir into life again. To begin with, the change in seasons is barely visible: one of the first signs is seen simply in movement. Gordon the robot mower working in harmony with our gardening team As mowing resumes, the first stripes return to the lawns. As with so much of the gardening, there is a balance between human skill and machine precision, both working in quiet partnership. Our gardening team’s knowledge

Galanthus nivalis, or the Snowdrop, blooms early in the year, when little else dares for fear of the cold. Its appearance subtly marks the first turn towards spring. Gathering at the feet of trees and along old stone walls, the blooming of the snowdrops at Athelhampton gives us the first inklings that winter is beginning to loosen its grip. An abundance of delicate snowdrops brightening up a cold winters day While not native to the UK, snowdrops have brightened our woodlands