Hergest Croft Gardens shortlisted for National Award

Hergest Croft Gardens named in the short list of six UK Gardens.

The Historic Houses Association Garden of the Year Award 2023 has officially been launched this month with six beautiful gardens competing to be named the Garden of the Year in a national public vote. The award, in conjunction with Christie’s auction house, has gone from strength to strength with tens of thousands of votes cast in recent years.

“We are absolutely thrilled and delighted to be shortlisted with some of the finest gardens in the country. said Austyn Hallworth, Head of Marketing & PR for Hergest Croft Gardens.

“The hard work now begins as we need to generate in excess of 4,000 votes to win before the closing date at the end of August. So, we are appealing to the lovely people of Hereford, the County and beyond to spend just a minute or two of their time to go on line and vote for their local garden. It is so important to us and if we win, it will bring significant footfall to the gardens and the surrounding area” he said. The public can vote here by clicking on this link https://www.historichouses.org/vote-for-garden-of-the-year-2023/

Hergest Croft Gardens in Kington extends over 28 ha (70 acres) with more than five thousand rare trees and shrubs. Described as "one of the finest collections of trees and shrubs in the British Isles", the gardens hold the UK National Collections of Maples, Birches and Zelkovas. The six distinct areas are Hergest Croft, the Azalea Garden, the Maple Grove, the Kitchen Garden, the Park and Park Wood.

Ben Cowell, Director General at Historic Houses: ‘Our Garden of the Year Award showcases the very best in gardening talent from across the UK. It is particularly exciting to see such a strong Scottish presence in the shortlist this year. Blair Castle, Dunvegan and Mount Stuart join Hergest Croft and Scampston from England as well as Glenarm, our first-ever shortlisted garden from Northern Ireland.  Together, these represent some of the UK’s very finest gardens.’

Ursula Cholmeley, Chair of the Historic Houses Gardens Committee: ‘The Garden of the Year Award is a great opportunity to recognise and reward the beauty and quality of independent historic gardens. The hard work that is put in to maintaining and evolving these gardens is undisputed, and it’s so important that not only the owners are celebrated but also the gardeners and volunteer teams who give up their time and effort day in, day out to preserving independently owned heritage. These gardens are amongst the finest in the country and we hope that you will get great pleasure from visiting some of them and voting for your favourite.’