Visiting the garden at Ickworth

A sea of blurred yellow daffodils surround an empty wooden bench — Sit for a while and admire the daffodils at Ickworth Estate | © National Trust Images/Justin Minns

Explore the immaculate Italianate garden at Ickworth which encircles the Rotunda. The earliest surviving example of its kind, the 1st Marquess designed the garden as pleasure grounds for his family and guests to enjoy. Discover how the Marquess brought the Mediterranean to a Suffolk garden.

Grand Tours and grander designs

The 1st Marquess dedicated his life to realising his father’s dream for Ickworth and under his watch, the Rotunda was finally completed. He next turned his attention to creating Italian-style gardens to complement the architecture.

On returning from his Grand Tour of Europe, a journey undertaken by a number of men in the 18th century, the Marquess set about bringing the Mediterranean to Suffolk. Corridors of manicured hedges sit alongside towering cypress trees.

You will find lawns that stretch from border to border and shrubs in muted colours set the tone. Thanks to his son, the Earl Bishop’s Italianate vision flows inside and outside the house.

Explore the gardens today as they were in their heyday, when aristocratic ladies and gentlemen spent their leisure time strolling along the neat pathways, playing croquet, or promenading on the raised terrace.

Couple walking down in the Victorian Border in Ickworrth's Italianate garden | © Jim Woolf

Always growing

The gardens at Ickworth reflect the changing times of the estate. The Stumpery was created by the garden team and adds a dash of Victorian mystery to the present day. The stumps belong to trees that were uprooted during the Second World War, when fields were sown to ‘Dig for Victory’.

Their gnarled roots nestle amongst the ferns and provide a shady spot that’s a perfect habitat for wildlife. In the Temple Garden, with its classical summerhouse and Mediterranean-style planting, you'll find a refreshing 21st-century spin on Ickworth’s Italianate theme.

A labour of love

The design of the gardens may be restrained, but they express the Herveys' devotion to home and family. The 1st Marquess included his children in designing the gardens and named many walks after them and other relatives.

Lady Geraldine’s walk, which weaves through carpets of snowdrops and aconites in the spring, is named after the 3rd Marquess’s wife. She took great pleasure ambling along its pathways while she was pregnant.

The 4th Marquess loved nothing more than to don his old clothes and dig up thistles. The Herveys cherished the freedom they had in their gardens, and carefully maintained them for future generations.

View of St Mary's Church, Walled Garden and Rotunda from south part of estate | © Jim Woolf

The 1st Earl’s spring garden

The walled garden has had many different identities since it was first created, from 18th-century leisure gardens to 20th-century working kitchen gardens.

It began its life in 1701 as a pleasure garden. Its red-brick walls sheltered visitors as they strolled through its different rooms. Set on a five-and-a-half-acre site, it’s one of the largest of its kind in East Anglia. Set close to the original Tudor house that preceded the Rotunda, the 1st Earl of Bristol enjoyed many a quiet hour in his ‘spring garden’.

Today you’ll find the walled garden as the perfect picnic spot for families, with spectacular views across the parkland.

Daffodils at Ickworth Estate

There are an abundance of daffodils at the Ickworth Estate and they are easily seen on a visit. Flowering between February and May, they are the most popular of the spring flowers.

Daffodils (Narcissus) come in many different varieties and range in height from the dwaff species at 5cm to the much larger ones that can grow up to 45cm tall. They also come in different colours ranging from white through various shades and tones of yellow to orange.

What varieties can be seen at Ickworth?

There are a few different varieties but here are the most common:

Narcissus psuedonarcissus This is the wild daffodil and is also known as the Lent Lily or Easter Lily. Found in many woodlands, it has a bright yellow trumpet and paler yellow petals surrounding it. It grows to arround 35cm and flowers March to April.
Narcissus tête a tête This is one of the most popular dwarf varieties standing at only 15cm high.
Narcissus poeticus var. recurvus Known as Pheasant's Eye, this daffodil has pure white petals and a small deep red eye. Growing up to 40cm and flowering April to May.

'Pheasant's Eye' daffodils, with white petals and yellow, red-rimmed trumpets — 'Pheasant's Eye' daffodils | © National Trust Images/Robert Morris

Where to see daffodils at Ickworth Estate

There are large displays of daffodils across the estate at Ickworth but the best spots to see them are:

Geraldine's and Erskine's Walk Large swathes can be viewed along this fully accessible trail that begins behind Porter's Lodge.
The main driveway to the house Daffodils can be seen either side of the main driveway that makes it's way to the Rotunda and West Wing.
The Stumpery daffodils can be seen nestled in the stumpery in the Italiante Garden. Sorry, no dogs are permitted in this area.