Come and see Great Dixter after 3pm in September and October for only £8.
Great Dixter in Northiam was the family home of the gardener and garden writer, Christopher Lloyd who devoted his life to creating one of the most experimental, exciting, and constantly changing gardens of our time. Christopher’s parents, Nathaniel and Daisy Lloyd, appointed the renowned architect, Sir Edward Lutyens, to redesign Great Dixter incorporating the farm buildings of the estate into the design and so providing an interconnected relationship between the house and gardens.
Fergus Garrett, head gardener and chief executive officer took over the running of Great Dixter when Christopher died in 2006. Fergus has followed Christopher’s ethos and ensured that Great Dixter garden continues to lead the way in how we garden in the 21st century.
Great Dixter merges the natural and cultivated world; its long grasses, scattered ponds, old walls and changing flower borders provide a rich environment for all manner of fauna and flora. Care and respect for the natural world has been embedded in the way that Great Dixter operates since the Lloyd family bought the property back in 1910. In 2017, a biodiversity audit was carried out in the gardens and wider estate, the results were astonishing, proving that a highly maintained garden can also support a rich abundance of life.
With flooding, heat waves and extreme weather becoming a more regular occurrence, Great Dixter continues to lead the way in gardening with nature. Great Dixter is also a centre of education, not only for the visiting public, schools, and course attendees but for trainee horticulturists from all over the world. Great Dixter is joyful; the planting is exuberant, quite unlike any other garden open to the public, provoking a strong reaction in those that visit.
The past few years have certainly brought their own challenges with Covid lockdowns, cost of living and the ongoing fuel crisis meaning that we have all had to pull in our belts. The world we find ourselves living in makes Great Dixter all the more important, showing us how we can garden with biodiversity in mind. In September and October 2022, we are offering admission into the garden for “£8 on the gate” after 3pm, which also happens to be the most tranquil time to visit.
Take advantage of the late afternoon peace and quiet: simply quote “8 on the gate” at the ticket office this autumn. The garden is open from Tuesday through to Sunday, closed on Mondays.
Great Dixter’s borders keep providing a show late into the autumn. Colchicums appear in the meadows, once they are cut back in August, cannas and dahlias demand your attention with persicaria orientalis and salvias providing a colourful backdrop. Christopher Lloyd championed succession planting. Where most gardens will have one or two bedding displays in one gardening year, Great Dixter can have four or five bedding displays in just one border, providing colour and interest all year round.
Give yourself a treat, visit Great Dixter after 3pm and enjoy “£8 on the gate”!
Great Dixter House and Gardens, Northiam, TN31 6PH. Open Tuesday to Sunday, “£8 on the gate'” September and October 2022 after 3pm.
Image Credits: Great Dixter Charitable Trust .
One thing about Great Dixster that you may not know is that during WW2 some local children were sent there to live during the threat of invasion.
Being evacuated 7 miles must be some sort of record, I have no records or evidence that this actually happened other than my late Mum who was one of them telling me.
Perhaps you could give the normal price for those of us without cars and who rely on public transport.
Fergus Garrett will be making a presentation to Pett Gardening Club entitled ‘Great Dixter, the Garden and its Biodiversity’ on Tuesday 13 September 2022 at 7.30pm at Pett Village Hall. Non-members welcome £10 (cash only) pay at the door. More details can be found here https://www.pettvillagehall.co.uk/upcoming-events