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Total of 30 openings.
Stobshiel House

Stobshiel House

Humbie EH36 5PD
Mr Maxwell and Lady Sarah Ward
Wednesdays only from 5 March to 24 September, 9am - 3.30pm, admission £6.00, children free. Tea, coffees, lunch and home baking available at Humbie Hub. (2025)
67
T:01875 833646 or 07876 350725 stobshiel@gmail.com
The garden at Stobshiel House is effectively split into four main parts viz., the walled garden, the shrubbery, the pond and lawns and the woodland areas. Each area is laid out and planted to provide the visitor with all year round interest from swathes of aconites, snowdrops and narcissi in spring to a vast array of perennials, roses, clematis and annuals throughout summer and autumn. The extensive collection of shrubs and mature trees offer a fantastic backdrop during all seasons.

Directions: Travelling from Humbie towards Haddington B6368. Take the second sign on the right opposite Gilchriston, having passed over a very narrow bridge. Go up hill until you see two stone pillars on a corner. If coming from Haddington to Humbie. Take the B6368 and turn uphill to the left at the first sign to Stobshiel. Continue uphill until you see the two stone pillars on your right at a sharp corner. What3words: acclaim.reform.breached

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Marie Curie 60%
Humbie Dean

Humbie Dean

Humbie EH36 5PW
Frank Kirwan
Wednesday 19 March, Wednesday 2 April, Wednesday 16 April, Wednesday 14 May, Wednesday 11 June, Wednesday 9 July & Wednesday 27 August, 10:30am - 4pm (2025)
c
frank.kirwan@gmail.com
A two-acre ornamental and wooded garden on a variety of levels, sandwiched between two burns at 600 feet, planted for year-round interest. The palette of plants includes hostas, hellebores, perennial geraniums, primula, meconopsis, martagon lilies, clematis, spring bulbs, ground cover, herbaceous and shrub planting, erythronium, daffodil and bluebell meadow, mature and recent azalea and rhododendron planting, and vegetable beds. The lower sections of the garden are only accessible by a series of steps.

Directions: Enter Humbie from the A68, pass the school and the village hall on the left then immediately turn right just before the Humbie Hub. Take the second left and Humbie Dean is on the left between two small bridges. Limited parking.  Find using what3words: shorthand.frog.limbs

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Mamie Martin Fund 60%
Mill of Forneth

Mill of Forneth

Forneth, Blairgowrie PH10 6SP
Mr and Mrs Graham Wood
Sunday 30 March & Sunday 8 June, 2pm - 4pm (2025)
26
gaw@forneth-mill.co.uk
Built on the site of a former watermill on the Lunan Burn, originally laid out in the 1970s by James Aitken, the Scottish landscape designer and naturalist. The sheltered four-acre garden has a range of mature trees, including a Himalayan blue cedar, large rhododendrons, azaleas and a wide range of shrubs. The former mill lade feeds rocky waterfalls and a lily pond. Planting includes established perennials with seasonal colours, many bulbs, primulas and heathers, plus a vegetable garden on the site of an old tennis court and a new wildflower meadow.

Directions: Take the A923 Dunkeld to Blairgowrie road. Six miles east of Dunkeld turn south onto a minor road signposted Snaigow and Clunie. Mill of Forneth is the first gate on the left-hand side. PLEASE NOTE due to wet weather conditions there may be limited safe meadow parking on site (exceptions will be made for people with mobility problems).

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Perthshire Women's Aid 60%
Glendoick

Glendoick

Glencarse, Perthshire PH2 7NS
Cox Family
1 April - 31 May, 10am - 4pm, admission £5.00, children free. (2025)
3c4d
T:01738 860260 gardencentre@glendoick.com
Glendoick’s gardens and garden centre with its award-winning café is the ideal spring day out in April and May. Glendoick boasts a unique collection of plants from three generations of Cox plant-hunting expeditions in China and the Himalaya. Enjoy one of the finest collections of rhododendrons and azaleas, magnolias and other acid-loving plants in the woodland garden and the gardens surrounding the house. Many of the rhododendron and azalea species and hybrids have been introduced from the wild or bred by the Cox family. There are fine waterfall views in the woodland gardens. The award-winning Glendoick Garden Centre has one of Scotland’s best selections of plants including their world-famous rhododendrons and azaleas as well as a gift shop and café.

Directions: Follow the brown signs to Glendoick Garden Centre off the A90 Perth - Dundee road. The gardens are a half-mile behind the Garden Centre. After buying tickets at the Garden Centre, please drive up and park at the gardens (free parking).

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Donation to SGS Beneficiaries
Ardchattan Priory

Ardchattan Priory

North Connel PA37 1RQ
Mrs Sarah Troughton
Open 1 April – 31 October (Wednesdays only) 9.30am - 5.30pm. Garden Fete Sunday 8th June 12 – 4pm. Admission £6 each day. Children under 16 free. (2025)
0c85d7
admin@ardchattan.co.uk
Overlooking Loch Etive, Ardchattan Priory Garden has a mature rockery and extensive herbaceous and rose borders to the front of the house. On either side of the drive, shrub borders, numerous roses and ornamental trees, together with bulbs, give colour throughout the season. The Priory, founded in 1230, is now a private house. The ruins of the chapel and graveyard are in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and open with the garden.

Directions: Oban 10 miles. From north, turn left off the A828 at Barcaldine onto the B845 for six miles. From east or from Oban on the A85, cross Connel Bridge and turn first right, proceed east on Bonawe Road.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Donation to SGS Beneficiaries
A Blackbird Sings

A Blackbird Sings

20 Kings Park, Longniddry EH32 0QL
Graham and Maxine Pettigrew
Saturday 12 April, Saturday 3 May, Saturday 31 May, Saturday 14 June, Saturday 19 July, Saturday 16 August & Saturday 6 September, 1pm - 5pm (2025)
46
T:01875 853003
Situated in the Glassel Park Estate, the planting of this long garden reflects East Lothian habitats including moorland, grassland and woodland, as well as areas of related plant varieties such as rockery, roses, ferns, heucheras and peonies. Together they form a pattern of gardens within a garden accessed by boardwalks and woodland paths. A large water lily pond houses newts and a second pond within a rockery is fed by a waterfall, A cold conservatory contains cacti and insectivorous plants. Vertical structure is provided by a large number of specimen small trees such as Cornus, maples, magnolias, contorted Robinia, Chinese rowan, Davidia and Honey Locust. Animal and bird carvings in wood by Graham reflect local fauna.

Directions: By car: enter Dean Road from A198, right at Kings Avenue, right at Kings Park. House is at the end of the second cul-de-sac. By bus (124, X5): Cunningham Court stop, down Cunningham Court and Old Dean Road to turn right on Kings Avenue and then right at Kings Park.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Leuchie 30% & Scottish Wildlife Trust Ltd 30%
Shepherd House

Shepherd House

Inveresk, Musselburgh EH21 7TH
Sir Charles and Lady Fraser
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 15 April - 31 July, 2 - 4pm and Sunday 18 May, 11am - 4pm. (2025)
467
T:0131 665 2570 ann.shepherdhouse@gmail.com
A constantly evolving artist’s garden that never stands still, with lots of surprises including a shell house built in 2014, rose parterres, a rill and fountains. At its heart are the plants filling every border, spilling over arches and lining paths, which are the inspiration for Ann’s paintings. The season starts with the snowdrop collection of over 70 cultivars, moves on through hellebores, tulips, irises and roses. One of the garden's features is a mirror steel diamond sculpture to commemorate the Frasers' diamond wedding anniversary and 60 years in this garden. 

Directions: The garden is near Musselburgh. From the A1 take the A6094 exit signposted Wallyford and Dalkeith and follow signs to Inveresk.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Barrahormid Trust 60%
Longwood

Longwood

Humbie EH36 5PN
Linda Flockhart and Sandra Gentle
Wednesday 16 April, Wednesday 14 May & Wednesday 11 June, 10:30am - 4pm (2025)
67
An extensive, long-established country garden at 800 feet, undergoing renewal. There are ducks and hens, stream and ponds as well as areas of wild garden and borders including roses, vegetables, lawns and woodlands. Stunning views over the Forth.

Directions: From the B6368 (Humbie to Haddington road) about one mile east of Humbie take the direction south to Blegbie Farm (signposted). Follow the road for circa two miles, passing Humbie Mains Farm as you go. You will find Blegbie Farm at a hard right-hand bend. The drive for Longwood will be straight in front of you, right beside Blegbie. Go straight up the drive and park at the bottom of the cottages. Do not turn right or left. What3words: mermaids.steepest.animals

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Médecins Sans Frontières 60%
Ardvorlich

Ardvorlich

Lochearnhead FK19 8QE
Mr and Mrs Sandy Stewart
19 April - 31 May, 9am - dusk, admission £5.00, children free. (2025)
7
T:01567 830335
Beautiful hill garden featuring over 170 different species of rhododendrons and many hybrids, grown in a glorious setting of oaks and birches on either side of the Ardvorlich Burn. The paths are quite steep and rough in places and boots are advisable, especially when wet.

Directions: On South Loch Earn Road three miles from Lochearnhead, five miles from St Fillans.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: The Ghurka Welfare Trust 60%
SGS Kilmacolm Plant Sale

SGS Kilmacolm Plant Sale

Outside Kilmacolm Library, Kilmacolm PA13 4LE
Scotland's Gardens Scheme
Saturday 19 April & Saturday 12 July, 10am - 12pm, donations welcome. (2025)
457
Spring and summer plant sales in the middle of Kilmacolm

Directions: The plant sales are held at the Cross outside the Library and Cargill centre in the middle of Kilmacolm. Accessible by McGill's buses

Admission: by donation
Charities: Pancreatic Cancer Action 60%
Inchmill Cottage

Inchmill Cottage

Glenprosen, near Kirriemuir DD8 4SA
Iain Nelson
Monday 21 April, Thursday 8 May, Thursday 22 May, Thursday 12 June, Thursday 10 July, Thursday 14 August & Thursday 4 September, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
T:01575 540452
This is a long, sloping and terraced garden at over 800 feet in the Braes of Angus, developed to be a garden for all seasons. Half is dominated by bulbs, rhododendrons, azaleas, primulas, meconopsis and clematis. The other half is mainly later summer bulbs, herbaceous plants and roses. There is also a rockery/scree.

Directions: Please DO NOT use SatNav. From Kirriemuir take the B955 (signposted The Glens) to Dykehead (about five miles). From there follow the Prosen sign for about five miles. Inchmill is the white-fronted cottage beside the phone box in the village. There is car parking beside the church (50 yards away) and by the village hall opposite.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: The Archie Foundation 60%
Willowhill

Willowhill

Forgan, Newport-on-Tay DD6 8RA
Eric Wright and Sally Lorimore
Saturday/Sunday/Monday, 26/27/28 April, Saturday 7 June, Monday 9 June, Saturday 14 June & Monday 16 June, 1pm - 5pm (2025)
c6
T:01382 542890 willowhillfife@btinternet.com
An evolving three-acre garden. The house is surrounded by a series of mixed borders designed with different vibrant colour combinations for effect in all seasons. Spectacular mix of roses, herbaceous perennials and annuals planted through the wide borders are a highlight in mid to late summer. A ‘no dig’ 160-foot border in shades of white, blue, purple and pale yellow was created in 2019/2020. The most recent addition to the garden is another ‘no dig’ border in shades of peach, burgundy, yellow, chocolate and acid yellow. Come and see! April and May for late spring bulbs and flowers; June and July for roses and high summer colour; August for late summer colour. The plant stall includes a lovely selection from the garden. Visitors are welcome to bring their own refreshments and picnic in the garden. A season ticket for all these dates, and by arrangement, is £25 plus p&p and admits the ticket holder plus guest. It comes with a limited edition of the Willowhill Garden Guide: 35 pages of beautiful photographs with descriptions of key garden features and plantings. A season ticket with booklet is a perfect gift for garden lovers for a birthday or at Christmas and do treat yourself too! Season tickets are available online at tinyurl.com/yxcj2mzy or by post (cheque for £27.76 payable to Scotland’s Garden Scheme) from Scotland's Gardens Scheme, 23 Castle Street, Edinburgh EH2 3DN.

Directions: 1.5 miles south of Tay Road Bridge. Take the B995 to Newport off the Forgan roundabout. Willowhill is the first house on the left-hand side next to West Friarton Farm Strawberry Shed.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Rio Community Centre 50%
Newliston

Newliston

Kirkliston EH29 9EB
Mr and Mrs R C Maclachlan
From 1 May to 4 June, 2 - 6pm, (not Mondays and Tuesdays) (2025)
6d7
T:0131 333 3231 newliston@gmail.com
A well preserved 18th-century parkland/designed landscape rather than a garden as such. Full of mature rhododendrons and azaleas, fine vistas and allées of trees. The walk around the woods and lake is a carpet of wild garlic and bluebells in the spring. The wood to the east of the house is in the pattern of the Union Jack, best appreciated by standing in the centre where all the radiating paths meet. The house, designed by Robert Adam, is also open.

Directions: Four miles south of the Forth Road Bridge, entrance off the B800.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: CHAS 60%
Ascog Hall Garden and Fernery

Ascog Hall Garden and Fernery

Ascog, Isle of Bute PA20 9EU
Josceline and Jane Wheatley
1 May - 31 July, 10am-5pm (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only) (2025)
c47
T:01700 503461(house) 07824 393 009 (Josceline) janejoswheatley@gmail.com
The unique feature of this three-acre garden is its Victorian Fernery with its elaborate glazed roof, springs and ponds providing a haven for many exotic fern species, including Britain's oldest, a 1000-year-old King Fern. Surrounding the Fernery are newly-planted garden rooms featuring Australasian, Asian and South American species set within its original landscaping. While in many ways a young garden set in mature surroundings, with renovation works still underway, the well-labelled, exotic plantings carry on the curiosity of its founders in the tremendous diversity of plants.

Directions: Three miles south of Rothesay on the A844. Close to the picturesque Ascog Bay. There is a bus every half hour Rothesay - Kilchattan.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: All proceeds to SGS Beneficiaries
The Secret Garden

The Secret Garden

Isle of Lismore, Oban, Argyll PA34 5UL
Eva Tombs
1 May - 1 September (Wednesday & Saturday), 10am - 5pm (2025)
2c
T:07786 374931 eva.tombs@gmail.com
A unique garden at the centre of a biodynamic farm on the Island of Lismore in the Inner Hebrides. The garden created from a field has a strong geometric layout that reflects the ecclesiastical history of the island. It has a vegetable garden, a tree nursery, a physic garden, an orchard and a polytunnel. The garden is a haven for wildflowers, birds, bees and butterflies. Standing stones, meadows, new woodlands, mountains and the sea encompass the whole. There is also a herd of rare breed Shetland cattle, chickens, ducks and friendly cats.

Directions: Please telephone for directions. Approximately two miles from Port Appin ferry.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance 30% & Oban Gaelic Choir 30%
4 Port Ann

4 Port Ann

Lochgilphead, Argyll PA31 8SE
Chris and Anne Buckland
Saturday/Sunday/Monday, 3/4/5 May, Monday/Tuesday, 26/27 May & Saturday/Sunday/Monday, 2/3/4 August, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
34679
chrisbuckland3@hotmail.com
This half acre tiered garden is situated in the former forestry village of Port Ann, enjoying a sheltered position between Loch Fyne and a pine forest. It is a fine example of what can be achieved in a relatively small space. Created over the last 15 years by Anne and Chris. Since Chris has become a wheelchair user part of the top level of the garden has been made accessible with a viewing platform to the garden and loch beyond. The garden has a water feature, a pond teeming with newts and dragonflies, a labyrinth designed by artist Margaret Ker, many neuks and crannies creatively filled with plants and small trees, including rhododendrons, azaleas, hawthorn, fig, maple and acers, and ends in a walk through a wilder area of hazels on the burn side where the ground is smothered in bluebells in May.

Directions: Heading north on A83 from Inveraray, before you reach Lochgilphead, Port Ann is signposted on the right. Please park in central square. Only the top garden deck is accessible by wheelchair.

Admission: £4.00, children free
Charities: MND Scotland 60%
Dowhill

Dowhill

Cleish KY4 0HZ
Mrs Colin Maitland Dougall
Wednesdays only in May and June, 10am - 4pm (2025)
67
T:01577 850207 pippamd@icloud.com
We're delighted that this garden is opening again after a break of five years. Please come along and see the garden's magnificent trees, woodland walks, ponds, blue poppies and swathes of primulas. There are lovely herbaceous borders near the house with perennials, shrubs and climbers, and below the house, one can walk around the linked ponds which are popular with wildfowl. Behind the house, there are woodland walks through rhododendrons and mature trees, leading up to Benarty Hill to the ruins of Dowhill Castle, with fine views over Loch Leven. Featured in Scotland for Gardeners by Kenneth Cox.

Directions: Three-quarters of a mile from M90, exit 5. Follow B9097 towards Crook of Devon, the entrance is between the trees on left.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: MND Scotland 60%
Kirkton Manor House

Kirkton Manor House

Peebles EH45 9JH
Mrs Rosemary Thorburn
Wednesdays only 7 - 28 May, 1pm - 4pm. (2025)
7
T:01721 740220 rpthorburn@icloud.com
Kirkton Manor House has a delightful, three-acre, informal country garden set in the beautiful Manor Valley. It enjoys spectacular open views and calling curlews from its riverside position. Bluebells flank the impressive entrance leading to a new shrub border. Stone steps continue through to terraced slopes filled with bulbs, roses and hellebores providing height, interest and fragrance. Grass paths meander along the burn where snowdrops, blue and white camassia, meconopsis, and ligularia thrive in this sunny meadow environment. Later, in June, sisyrinchiums, irises, orchids and many flowering shrubs and roses are abundant. The natural woodland includes many interesting trees.

Directions: Turn off the A72 west of Neidpath Castle, signposted to Kirkton Manor. After crossing the River Tweed, enter a garden gate which is a mile downhill, opposite a Beware Horses sign.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: All proceeds to SGS Beneficiaries
Haystoun

Haystoun

Peebles EH45 9JG
Mrs Mary Coltman
every Wednesday in May, 1.30 - 5pm. (2025)
67
T:01721 720645
This seventeenth-century house (not open) has a charming walled garden with an ancient yew tree, herbaceous beds and vegetable garden. There is a wonderful burnside walk created since 1980, with azaleas and rhododendrons leading to a small ornamental loch (cleared in 1990) with stunning views up Glensax Valley.

Directions: Cross the River Tweed in Peebles to the south bank and follow Scotland's Gardens Scheme sign for approximately one mile.

Admission: £7.00, children free
Charities: St.Columba’s Hospice Care 60%
16 Mulla

16 Mulla

Voe, Shetland ZE2 9XQ
Linda Richardson
Saturday/Sunday, 10/11 May, 10:30am - 4:30pm (2025)
2c47
T:07765 037516 linda@lindarichardson.co.uk
A garden on the Clubb of Mulla, a hillside overlooking Olnafirth with views of the sea and Lower Voe. Started in October 2016, the steep overgrown plot looked like a continuation of the moor at the back of the house. This garden shows what can be achieved in a very windy and exposed situation, battling against the extremes of the Shetland weather. Gardening with wildlife in mind, trees were planted in the spring of 2017, now providing shelter for birds. There are herbaceous borders, rockery, vegetable bed, 3.6 x 2.4 metre greenhouse, mini wildflower meadow strips and a natural water feature which is a long drainage ditch planted up with willows and water-loving plants. Always a work in progress, more trees have been planted to increase wildlife habitat. The owner is an artist-printmaker with an open studio that folk are welcome to look around too.

Directions: Eighteen miles north of Lerwick on the A970 is Voe. Pass the North Isles junction and Tagon Stores on your right. Turn right into Mulla and number 16 is up the hill on your left. Bus no. 21 (Hillswick) and 23 (Toft) stop on the main road at the bottom of Mulla.

Admission: by donation
Charities: RSPB: for projects in Shetland 60%
Bridgend Farmhouse Community Allotments

Bridgend Farmhouse Community Allotments

41 Old Dalkeith Road EH16 4TE
Bridgend Farmhouse Community Allotments
Saturday 10 May & Sunday 20 July, 11am - 3pm (2025)
0c84579
T:07738399185 jo@bridgendfarmhouse.org.uk
Discover a hidden gem in South Edinburgh, a peaceful community growing space where everyone is welcome. Under the backdrop of Arthur's Seat, we grow annual and perennial vegetables and fruit, and enjoy it with our community. We are an organic garden, with an emphasis on biodiversity and sustainable gardening practices. Why not take a moment to wander around the rest of the Bridgend Farmhouse site, explore our peace garden, café, and workshop spaces

Directions: There is only disabled parking at Bridgend Farmhouse, so we encourage visitors to come by bike, bus (24, 33, 38, 49), or park at Cameron Toll Shopping Centre, a 10 minute walk away.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Bridgend Farmhouse 60%
Cally Biodiversity Gardens

Cally Biodiversity Gardens

Cally Avenue, Gatehouse of Fleet DG7 2DJ
Kevin Hughes
Sunday 11 May & Sunday 28 September, 10am - 5pm (2025)
2c57
T:01557 815228 info@callygardens.co.uk
A one hectare walled garden containing an outstanding collection of rare and common plants from around the world assembled to create naturalistic habitat for our native fauna. Some plants can be found in no other Scottish Garden whilst many are first introductions to gardens in the UK. This is an example of gardening harmoniously with nature where declining birds such as Garden warbler can be seen nesting amongst Himalayan poppies & American Prairie plants whilst lucky people might glimpse harvest mice in our unique Grassland Ecology Garden. We use no artificial fertiliser or pesticide and this is also true of the plants we grow for our plant sale area which has a wide range of less common plants.

Directions: From Dumfries take the Gatehouse of Fleet turning off the A75, follow the B727 and turn left through the Cally Palace Hotel gateway from where the gardens are well signposted. A regular bus service will stop at the end of Cally Drive if requested.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: WWF-UK 60%
Cloan

Cloan

by Auchterarder PH3 1PP
Neil Mitchison
Sunday 11 May, 10am - 5pm (2025)
267
T:07958 155831 niall@fastmail.co.uk
Two acres of wild garden, with a wide variety of rhododendrons and azaleas, and an impressive collection of trees, including metasequoia, cryptomeria, Acer cappadocicum, Sequoia sempervirens, Quercus robur ‘Filicifolia’, liriodendron, several Japanese maples, magnificent beech and Scots pine trees, and extensive yew topiary; also an acre of walled garden with embothriums, Acer griseum, several sorbus varieties, parrotia and a large herbaceous border. Fine views of Strathearn from the front of the house. 

Directions: From the A823, just south of the A9, follow the small road heading north east, signposted Duchally. Continue for approximately 2½ miles, turn right at the sign Coulshill. Continue for just under ½ mile. Follow the signs for car parking.

Admission: £4.00, children free
Charities: Tiphereth Limited: Camphill Scotland 60%
Tyninghame House and The Walled Garden

Tyninghame House and The Walled Garden

Tyninghame House, Dunbar EH42 1XW
Mrs C Gwyn, Tyninghame Gardens Ltd
Sunday 11 May, 1pm - 5pm (2025)
345ed7
The Walled Garden, Tyninghame Dunbar EH42 1XW (Mrs C Gwyn): The formal walled garden combines the lawn, sculpture and yew hedges, an Apple Walk, extensive herbaceous planting including roses and peonies with an informal arboretum. Splendid 17th century sandstone Scottish baronial house, remodelled in 1829 by William Burn.
Tyninghame House Dunbar EH42 1XW (Tyninghame Gardens Ltd): The gardens include herbaceous border, formal rose garden, Lady Haddington’s Secret Garden with old fashioned roses and an extensive wilderness spring garden with rhododendrons, azalea, flowering trees and bulbs. Grounds include a one-mile beech avenue to the sea. The Romanesque ruin of St Baldred’s Church commands views across the Tyne Estuary and Lammermuir Hills. Tyninghame has been awarded ‘Outstanding’ for every category in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes of Scotland.

Champion Trees: Two British and seven Scottish

Directions: Gates on the A198 at Tyninghame Village. Bus 120. 

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Leuchie 60%
18 Duchess Park with Westburn

18 Duchess Park with Westburn

Helensburgh G84 9PY
Stewart & Sue Campbell (18 Duchess Park) Sheila Baker, Cameron & Anne Foy (Westburn)
Sunday 11 May, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
2c
18 Duchess Park The garden is small, about 40 years old, and is still being developed. The garden backs on to Duchess Wood, which is our local nature reserve. The rear garden is sloping with steps on one side and a gravel path on the other side to get to the upper garden. It is a woodland garden with two large oak trees, over 50 species and hybrid rhododendrons, and many other interesting woodland trees and plants. Sycamore in the wood behind the garden have been felled in the last year, giving more light at the back, and they have been replaced by trial planting of lower-growing shrubs and trees, both native and hybrid. Mid-May should be a good time to enjoy many of the rhododendrons in full bloom. Almost all the plants are clearly named!
Short guided wildflower walks in Duchess Wood will be offered during the afternoon by the Friends of Duchess Wood. The bluebells should be in bloom. If the weather is poor, "stout" shoes are recommended.
Westburn A woodland garden of just over two acres. The Glennan Burn runs through a woodland of oak and beech trees with bluebells in the springtime. Some of the paths are steep, but there are bridges over the burn and handrails in places. There is also an air raid shelter, and the remains of a kiln where James Ballantyne Hannay manufactured artificial diamonds in the 1800s. A lawn is surrounded by rhododendrons and azaleas, and there is a vegetable garden. Areas of the garden are currently being pruned and replanted.

Directions: From Sinclair Street, travel west along Queen Street until it becomes Duchess Park, a cul de sac. Number 18 is at the far end on the right. Proceed along West Montrose Street from Sinclair Street and take the fourth turn on the right. The entrance of Westburn is 100 yards up Campbell Street on the right-hand side.

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Friends of Duchess Wood 30%, St Michael & All Angels Church 15% & Scottish SPCA 15%
Dalswinton House

Dalswinton House

Dalswinton DG2 0XZ
Mr and Mrs Peter Landale
Sunday 11 May, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
246d7
T:01387 740220 sarahlandale@gmail.com
Late 18th-century house sits on top of a hill surrounded by herbaceous beds and well-established shrubs, including rhododendrons and azaleas, overlooking the loch. Attractive walks through woods and around the loch. It was here that the first steamboat in Britain made its maiden voyage in 1788 and there is a life-size model beside the water to commemorate this. Over the past years, there has been much clearing and development work around the loch, which has opened up the views considerably. 

Directions: Take the A76 north from Dumfries to Thornhill. After seven miles, turn right to Dalswinton. Drive through Dalswinton village, past the red church on the right and follow estate wall on the right. Entrance is by either the single lodge or double lodge entrance set in the wall.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Kirkmahoe Parish Church of Scotland 60%
Belgrave Crescent Gardens

Belgrave Crescent Gardens

Edinburgh EH4 3AJ
The Residents of Belgrave Crescent
Sunday 11 May, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
28469
City centre private garden of seven acres beside the historic Dean Bridge. Shrubs, trees, herbaceous and mixed borders provide a haven of peace close to the city, with wild areas and magnificent views of the Dean Bridge and over the Water of Leith.

Directions: The garden is a five-minute walk from the West End. Enter from the East Gate in Belgrave Crescent. Buses 19, 22, 36, 37, 41, 43, 47 and 113 (Dean Bridge stop).

Admission: £6.00, children free
Charities: Fresh Start 60%
Dalfruin

Dalfruin

Kirktonhill Road, Kirriemuir DD8 4HU
Mr and Mrs James A Welsh
Sunday 11 May, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
c4
A well-stocked, connoisseur’s garden of about a third of an acre situated at the end of a short cul-de-sac. There are many less common plants like varieties of trilliums, meconopsis (blue poppies), tree peonies (descendants of ones collected by George Sherriff and grown at Ascreavie), dactylorhiza and codonopsis. There is a scree garden and collection of ferns. The vigorous climbing rose, Paul’s Himalayan Musk, grows over a pergola. Interconnected ponds encourage wildlife. This 25th year of opening will be our final year.

Directions: From the centre of Kirriemuir turn left up Roods. Kirktonhill Road is on the left near the top of the hill. Park on Roods or at St Mary’s Episcopal Church. Disabled parking only in Kirktonhill Road. Bus 20 (from Dundee) getting off at either stop on the Roods.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Kirriemuir Day Care Ltd 60%
Oakmore

Oakmore

Blairhoyle, Port of Menteith, Stirling FK8 3LF
Rachel Nunn
Sunday 11 May & Sunday 13 July, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
2c6
T:07872 068080
In 2014 this garden was a 3½ acre field with a small wood and lots of rushes. Under the hands of a gardening fanatic and her willing husband, you will see a maturing garden with raised herbaceous borders, young orchards, a developing shrubbery, a rose garden, a bog garden and a variety of species trees. This is a garden for real plant enthusiasts and to enjoy it to the full, good footwear is recommended, particularly if it has been raining.

Directions: Blairhoyle is on the Thornhill to Port of Monteith road.

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Strathcarron Hospice 30% & Macmillan Cancer Support 30%
Highwood

Highwood

off Lochwinnoch Road, Kilmacolm PA13 4TF
Dr Jill Morgan
Sunday 11 May, 2pm - 5pm (2025)
2c7
A beautiful woodland walk around 50 acres of native bluebells and primroses in a delightful setting bordering the Green Water river with tumbling waterfalls. Great outdoor space for children to run and explore and splash in the burn (under supervision). A haven of tranquillity only three miles from the centre of Kilmacolm. This opening is raising funds for Buildher (buildher.org) a social enterprise owned by Orkidstudio.

Directions: Take the B786 Lochwinnoch road out of Kilmacolm and continue for approximately two miles. From Lochwinnoch take the B786 Kilmacolm road for approximately six miles. Turn up the road signposted for Killochries. Then follow the yellow SGS signs. 

Admission: £5.00, children free
Charities: Orkidstudio 60%