With 2016 hailed the Year of the English Garden, Cheshire’s Gardens of Distinction Consortium has unveiled an exciting programme of events throughout the year to showcase Cheshire’s gardens.
The Year of the English Garden initiative has been launched by Visit England in celebration of one of England’s greatest attractions and to mark the 300th anniversary of Capability Brown, a pioneering landscape architect in the 18th century.
It aims to spotlight and celebrate the country’s fabulous gardens and events and encourage more visitors to explore them.
Cheshire is home to a wealth of beautiful and inspiring gardens which once again this year will feature a wide range of events beginning this month with the Snowdrops Walks at Alsager’s Rode Hall Gardens between now and March 6, a beautiful end-of-winter walk for all the family with more than 70 varieties of snowdrops.
Other Snowdrop Walks are also taking place at Ness Gardens near Ellesmere Port. Dunham Massey’s Winter Garden, the UK’s largest, is also a feature, home to hundreds of evergreen and winter flowering shrubs giving way to carpets of snowdrops, daffodils and winter iris.
Other highlights during the year include the RHS Flower Show at Tatton Park, taking place from July 20-24, where the Cheshire Gardens Consortium will be exhibiting at an English Country Gardens themed stand.
Cheshire’s Gardens of Distinction was formed to draw together the best of Cheshire’s Gardens and celebrate the richness and diversity of the region’s horticultural heritage and green spaces.
A new guide is being launched at Easter and features all 23 garden members, as well as highlighting the major events taking place throughout the year.
Sam Youd, chair of Cheshire’s Gardens of Distinction, said: “Cheshire’s gardens are one of the area’s key assets and the Year of the English Garden is the perfect opportunity to promote the wide range of leading garden attractions across Cheshire and encourage even more visitors to experience and explore the beauty and diversity of our gardens.”
More information and full details of all events can be found on the Cheshire Gardens website www.cheshiresgardens.com.
