insideKENT Magazine Issue 85 - April 2019 | Page 47

HEVER CASTLE & GARDENS © Hever Castle & Gardens
GOODNESTONE PARK GARDENS © Marcus Harpur
Hever Castle & Gardens, Hever
www.hevercastle.co.uk Goodnestone Park Gardens, Goodnestone
www.goodnestoneparkgardens.co.uk
Until William Waldorf Astor bought Hever Castle
in 1903, only a modest g arden existed around the
castle walls. Today, thanks to his remarkable efforts
and those of the g ardening team tha t ha ve
rediscovered parts of the garden that had long been
forgotten, the award-winning gardens at Hever Castle
offer many magnificent areas that are a pleasure to
visit at any time of the year. From the formal Italian
garden to the rose garden to the lakeside pathways
and clever yew maze, and not f orgetting Sixteen
Acre Island where the water maze can be found, the
variety and beauty of Hever is impressive. Jane Austin would often visit her br other at his
home at Goodnestone, and she admired the gardens
as much as people do toda y. Goodnestone P ark
Gardens is featured in the Good Gar dens Guide,
and some of the trees found here date back many
hundreds of years.
Emmetts Garden, Ide Hill
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/emmetts-garden
Emmetts Garden is more than ‘just’ a garden. It is
many different, incredible gardens all rolled into one
amazing place to visit w hen you need a little time
out, want to find some peace and quiet, or simply
need to find some space to breathe. Visit the North
Garden with its un usual ‘wedding cake tr ee’; the
South Garden with the intriguing ly named burnt
toffee tree during autumn, the P ersian silk tree in
summer and the wonderful handkerchief tree in the
spring; the Rock Garden with a lily pond and winding
paths; or the R ose Garden, originally cr eated for
Catherine Lubbock between 1910 and 1920. This
is the central feature at Emmetts, and is where you
will see the Octavia Hill rose (Octavia Hill was one
of the founders of the National Trust).
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