Shake off those Winter Blues and Step into Spring!

Ramster Gardens

Ramster is one of my absolute favourite places to go to relax. I can spend anything from half an hour to 3 hours here, just wandering around and sitting on one of their lovely benches, getting lost in a book. It is beautiful all year round, but Spring and Autumn are my favourite times to visit. Spring brings all the beautiful blossoms and magnolias and in October a stroll through their ‘Acer Avenue’ is just breathtaking. They have recently updated their tea room too which is lovely.

Only 20 minutes from my front door, and a reasonable annual membership fee (£36 for a single adult for the whole year - usually £9 per visit), it is simply beautiful. They have a fabulous Sculpture Trail every Spring. This year it is from 28th April to 29th May. They also have a few permanent sculptures which are also lovely.

Ramster is not open all year around though, so do check before you travel. This season they are open from 17th March until 2nd July. Their contact details are: Tel: 01428 654167, email: office@ramsterhall.com, Website: www.ramsterevents.com. Full address is: Ramster Gardens, Petworth Road, Chiddingfold, Surrey GU8 4SN.

RHS Wisley Gardens

I never tire of going to Wisley Gardens. There is always so much to see and always something going on! This time we were blessed with the most incredible blossoms to welcome us in, and all around the walk, and the magnolias were just stunning. We even saw a family of baby ducklings, and of course the famous glasshouse with its beautiful orchids, waterfall and other plants is always a real treat, and I love the bonsai trees too. Good restaurant and café facilities, and a massive gift shop if that is your thing!

We were also lucky enough to go during the ‘Daffodil show’. I’ve never been to one before and simply couldn’t believe the different types of daffodil you can get, let alone that people actually show them! A stunning collection of large and small daffodils that really opened my eyes to all the different varieties, and the care involved in growing these beautiful flowers.

RHS Wisley Gardens is open Monday to Friday from 10am-6pm and Saturday and Sunday from 9am-6pm, and they are open every day of the year except Christmas Day. Members can bring a friend for free. Usual adult ticket price is £16.50. Their contact details are: Tel: 01483 224234, Email: wisley@rhs.org.uk, Website: www.rhs.org.uk. Their full address is: Wisley Lane, Wisley, Woking, Surrey GU23 6QB.

Nymans National Trust Gardens

One of my lovely friends from up North was down South for a few days, and as we are both National Trust members, we selected Nymans as a lovely place to meet. Although one of the smaller properties, it is one of my absolute favourites - I think there’s a little bit of magic there! The blossoms were just stunning everywhere we looked (I took this months cover shot there too), and you can’t help but relax as you stroll around.

Some of the house (and some areas of the garden too) were sadly closed this time, but I love how you can really feel that this was a family home, unlike some of the larger National Trust properties that whilst beautiful, can feel a bit grand! Although a large portion of the building is still damaged from the awful fire of 1947, I feel like it somehow brings a certain charm and romanticism to the place, as the black birds fly around the rooftops, with the blossoms all around.

Nymans Gardens is generally open from 10am-5pm most days. The house itself and the second-hand bookshop are usually open from 11am-4pm most days. It is worth checking online though before you come to be sure. They have a resident artist there from March to November too, called John Thompson who you might spot when you go, and who is always happy to chat about his work and the monthly workshops he runs there. Nymans contact details are: Tel: 01444 405250, Email: nymans@nationaltrust.org.uk, Website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/nymans. Their full address is: Handcross, near Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH17 6EB.

Home!

We are lucky enough in our rental home to have a beautiful back garden, which really comes to life in Spring! We have a wild patch of beautiful daffodils, primroses, tulips and bluebells, which are such a treat. I do try to get outside to have a coffee and read my book when time allows, and what better reason than these!

I love taking close ups of plants and flowers too – here’s one of the inside of one of the lovely red tulips! It’s always lovely to see the different patterns – nature is so very clever.