Walled Garden

An 18th-century kitchen garden, restored to its former glory

The Walled Garden dates back to the 18th century and is a large, four-acre site historically used to produce fruit, vegetables and flowers for the castle.

Today, this wonderful horticultural space provides a stunning entrance to the castle grounds.

The site has been restored and re-presented to create a beautiful working and productive garden, complete with dipping pond, crop rotations, seasonal produce, herbaceous borders and an apple orchard.

Summer planting

Our Walled Garden is a delight for the senses in summer, when the beautiful blue nepeta, elegant irises and the soft muted palette of the herbaceous borders come into bloom.

Of particular interest are the Espalier fruit trees, some of which were planted over 100 years ago and include varieties such as the Pitmaston Duchess and Dr Jules Guyot.

Irish apple tree varieties such as Kilkenny Pearmain and Bloody Butcher provide interest at the top of the Walled Garden.

When

In line with gardens opening hours

Ticketing information

Included in all admission tickets (members go free)

Buy Hillsborough Castle and Gardens tickets

Things to see

Enjoy seasonal produce from our historic garden

Autumn has arrived at Hillsborough Castle and our dedicated Walled Garden team are busy bringing in the harvest. See how this is done, and how the crops are used in the nearby Hillsborough Castle Café, in this short video.

The Café at Hillsborough

Video: Meet the Keeper of the Walled Garden

Meet Adam Ferguson, our Keeper of the Walled Garden, in this short film.

As part of the Hillsborough Castle Project completed in April 2019, Adam and his team have brought the garden to life with a new re-imagination of the planting and layout.