Blog
Lifestyle
The best gardens in Oxfordshire

The best gardens in Oxfordshire

There’s nothing nicer than spending a day exploring beautiful, unusual or historic gardens and stopping for morning coffee or afternoon tea in a quaint café. Here are some of our favourite gardens in Oxfordshire – hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Written by

Sheila Frampton

Make sure you check the websites for opening times. If you enjoy walking, discover a local walking group on the Ramblers website, and you will be also to meet new people in the process.

Waterperry Gardens, Wheatley

The 8-acre Waterperry Gardens are home to beautiful herbaceous borders, formal knot and rose gardens, spectacular white and lavender wisteria arch, water lily canal, alpine garden and peaceful riverside walk. There’s a gift barn and art gallery and a tea shop renowned for its delicious cakes.

An image description goes here.

Nearest Beechcroft Development: Castle Gardens, Watlington

Grey’s Court & Garden, near Henley-on-Thames

The National Trust’s gardens at Grey’s Court have been created amidst the ruins of a fortified manor. A small pool is fringed by the ‘white garden’ which leads to a rose garden with herbaceous borders and a cherry garden. The ‘jewel in the crown’ of this garden is the colourful walled garden with its mixture of flowers and vegetables, next to an orchard with a host of apple varieties, grown organically.

Nearest Beechcroft Development: Nettlebed

Stonor Park Garden, Henley-on-Thames

Home to the Stonor family for over 800 years, Stonor Park and garden is surrounded by a wooded deer park, tucked in a valley amidst the Children Hills. The historic house is a delight with stained glass and art collection including ceramics. To the rear of the house, there are wonderful views of the deer park from the hillside, walled garden.

Nearest Beechcroft Development: Shiplake

Blenheim Palace, Woodstock

The family residence of the Churchill family, Blenheim Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and home to a number of beautiful gardens.

The Blenheim Estate stretches over 12,000 acres and includes rivers and some of Europe's most significant ancient oak woodlands, which according to Blenheim's website took root "more than 900 years ago".

A short miniature train journey from the front of the palace, you will find a pretty walled garden, built, managed and extended over the centuries by significant garden designers including Henry Wise and Achille Duchêne. Stroll past the Water Terraces, the Duke's Private Italian Garden and the tranquil Secret Garden and several other key highlights.

The Walled Gardens are also home to a number of other features, including a tropical butterfly house, and the Marlborough Maze, which is made up of hundreds of expertly-landscaped yew trees. In total, the maze is over two miles in length, so we hope you manage to avoid getting lost during your visit.

Lastly, settle down with a cup of tea or coffee at the Pizza Café, and admire the beautiful setting.

Nearest Beechcroft Development: Cotswold Gate, Burford

The University of Oxford's Botanic Garden

If you're interested in visiting a garden that is steeped in history and science, look no further than The University of Oxford's Botanic Garden.

This is the oldest botanic garden in Great Britain and one of the oldest scientific gardens in the world. Founded in 1621 as a physic garden growing plants for medicinal research, today it contains over 5,000 different species.

The historic walled garden is a green oasis of calm in the centre of the city and you can see seven display glasshouses with tropical rainforests, the world’s largest water lilies, carnivorous plants, desert cacti and alpine flora.

This garden is perfectly placed to be visited alongside many of the other sites that the historic city of Oxford has to offer, including being located next to Christchurch College, and it's adjacent meadow and the River Thames.

Nearest Beechcroft Development: Longcross Place, Wallingford