The gardens of South Wales

Dyffryn is a set of intimate, highly individual gardens, set within 55 acres and overlooked by an Edwardian mansion. Relax and draw your own horticultural inspiration from its yew-lined borders, and imagine the sound of croquet being played on the nearby lawns more than 100 years ago.

Take your lawn-surveying hat off to the Wye Valley Sculpture Garden, a three acre plant garden, because it’s spent over 40 years as an organic garden in between regular visits from magazine photographers. Mediterranean plants thrive in its climate, as do an extensive collection of Snowdrops to see in February. This lush setting also features a pond and sculptures by local artist Gemma Kate Wood.

Victoriana is rarely manifested as exquisitely as it is here. Lord Tredegar designed Belle Vue with a whole host of rockeries, bandstands, pavilions, streams, waterways, trees and more before he donated it more than a century ago. Magnolia blooms and autumnal splendour mark its changing seasons, accompanied by Victorian ironworks.

As you might expect, landscapers found quite a lot to work to do at Dewstow Gardens when these Edwardian gardens – buried under tons of soil after the Second World War – were rediscovered in 2000. Ponds, rills, a labyrinth of grottoes, ferneries and rock gardens now dot the seven-acre haven, transformed by an extensive restoration campaign.

A spectacular 15 acre private garden imaginatively landscaped and skilfully planted by seven generations of the same family. Ponds, streams, bridges, lawns and flower beds give Llanover Garden a joyful sense of adventure. The Black Welsh Mountain sheep, introduced by Lady Llanover in the nineteenth century, continue to peacefully graze the parkland.

If the trees could speak, they’d have a tale or two to tell in the shadow of Fonmon Castle, which dates from 1200. And the gardens surrounding these old timbers aren’t bad either – the lawns are perfect for daydreaming rather than battling these days, complementing pristine beds and hedges.

We could mention the 17th century mansion, Tredegar House, owned by a hugely powerful family for 500 years, at the heart of this historic place. But for garden lovers, the three formal spaces – an orchard, an orangery and a cedar garden – are full of character, summoning that history within 90 parkland acres.

Acclaimed garden designer Anne Wareham shaped Veddw House Garden with history in mind – one large parterre, for example, is based on a local map from 1842. The curvy hedges and planting schemes aim to reflect the rolling hills they lie in the shadow of, leading to a pool adored by visitors.

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