Stunning County Down garden to open its gates for charity.
Greyabbey House to open gardens, Saturday 8 September.
Come along and enjoy the opportunity to explore the private and beautiful gardens of Greyabbey House, set against the backdrop of Strangford Lough on the Ards Peninsula.
The garden opens on Saturday 8 September from 2 to 5pm and this is the date for the garden lover’s diary, and the invitation comes from owners William and Daphne Montgomery.
Visitors, for one day only, can enjoy the grounds of this 17th century demesne, with every penny of the entrance fee supporting the work of conservation charity, the Woodland Trust.
The formal gardens are breath-taking, while the mature parkland, lake, and remains of a Cistercian abbey add to an unmissable afternoon.
Glorious flowers and trees from around the world are waiting to impress. A ‘Southern Hemisphere garden’ contains a collection of plants from New Zealand, Tasmania, Australia, Argentina, Chile and South Africa. Other attractions are the walled garden, vegetable garden, late summer border, and shrub rose border. Two orchards boast an enviable collection of Victorian fruit trees and recently planted Irish apple trees.
Patrick Cregg is the director of the Woodland Trust and said: “The extensive grounds of Grey Abbey House are truly out of this world. They provided the venue for the recent drama series Woman in White, so those who have already had a glimpse will definitely want to join us.
“Usually only open to organised groups, this is a refreshing opportunity for members of the public to feast their eyes upon acres of stunning gardens. We’re very grateful to Mr and Mrs Montgomery for supporting our work in this way.”
Afternoon tea will be available in the Granary.
Admission is £5 per adult. Booking is recommended, though not essential.
Find out more and book a place at:
www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/events
or telephone 0330 333 5302 (lines open Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.00pm). Greyabbey House sits in the village of Greyabbey, County Down, BT22 2QA.
The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK. It has over 500,000 supporters.
The Trust, established in 1972, has over 1,000 sites in its care covering over 22,500 hectares. Access to its woods is free, and it has three key aims:
- to protect ancient woodland, which is rare, unique and irreplaceable
- to restore damaged ancient woodland, bringing precious pieces of our natural history back to life
- to plant native trees and woods with the aim of creating resilient landscapes for people and wildlife.
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now Further news can be found at www.woodlandtrust.org.uk
and here in Northern Ireland the Woodland Trust cares for fifty woods in total.
