Whether you like to plan your holidays around gardens to visit, or just want to fit in a day out to one during your break, it is always helpful to know in advance about places where you don't need to book or pay entry fees. Not only is it easier to organise and change plans at short notice, but you'll also be leaving more in your holiday budget to enjoy doing other things.
From small gardens to large parks, we've done the hard work to show there is plenty to see without the need to splash out. Read on for our pick of the UK and Europe's best free-entry gardens and green spaces - all of them brimming with gardening inspiration.
Italian Gardens, Kensington Gardens, London
Find serenity in central London at the Italian Gardens, which are situated within Kensington Gardens in Hyde Park. The entrance can be found near Lancaster Gate at the north of the grounds.
The 150-year-old Italian Gardens is believed to have been created as a gift to Queen Victoria by Prince Albert, who was a keen gardener. The elaborate water feature displays four main basins surrounded by ornate statues and urns. Film fans will recognise the fountain as the one that Hugh Grant and Colin Firth fell into during a tussle in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. You can take shelter in Queen Anne's Alcove, a folly designed by Christopher Wren and described as the 'poshest park bench in London', and enjoy lunch on the café terrace. During the summer months, ice creams are sold from vintage Rolls Royce vans and deckchairs can be rented at Buck Hill, which is adjacent to the garden and looks over the ponds.
Open From 6am every day. Closing times vary, so check the website Find out more bit.ly/ken-gdn Get there D KISZO
Sheffield Botanical Gardens, Sheffield
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2023 من Gardeners World.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2023 من Gardeners World.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
We love June
We're cruising towards midsummer: this is a month full of love and abundance. Wherever you look there will be something in your garden that lifts the spirits and makes you glad to be alive. We have colour to cheer us, we have leaves that still have the bounce and freshness of small puppies, we have the first berries fattening up, there are birds frantically parenting very demanding broods of chicks, the bees are all over the place, it's prime barbecue and picnic season, and we have lawns as lush and green as billiard tables. What a month to fall in love.
Your wildlife month
The female will usually lay one clutch of up to eight eggs
An edible garden in pots
Join Lucy Bellamy in creating an edible container garden for all seasons, as she harvests what's ripe now and starts later-season crops
Garden craft with kids
Fill the summer holidays with fun nature makes for kids, including botanical printed t-shirts, seed sowing in upcycled food containers and a hanging home for beneficial insects. Jaime Johnson and family show you how
Secrets of a COLOURFUL GARDEN
Using a colour theme is an easy way to give any garden a strong, unified character - Nick Bailey shows you how
Indoor plants, outdoor treats
Break the rules and give your house plants a summer holiday, with Michael Perry's mixed pot display ideas
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
The first few weeks of summer are a good time to get spring-flowering plants in shape. Follow Frances' guide for best results
Gardening for wellbeing
As the pressures of modern living bear down, our outside spaces can provide soothing respite for our minds and bodies, says Arit Anderson
Your greenhouse guide to A fruitful summer
Get the best from your greenhouse fruit and vegetable crops this summer, with these tried and trusted growing tips from Adam Frost
Stars of the show
Agapanthus is the perfect midsummer plant, flowering with spectacular blooms from June onwards and, as Monty explains, it loves to grow in a pot
