Visiting Nymans garden

Blossom at Nymans

Visit Nymans for a 'Festival of Blossom' where our expert volunteer garden guides are on hand to point you in the direction of the best displays of blossom. Tours are daily at 11am and 2pm and are complimentary with admission.

Pick up a blossom activity pack on your visit, it’s full of inspiration for learning, baking and making when you get home.

During Blossom Week itself (Sat 20 Apr– Sun 28 Apr) see a blossom-inspired floral display in the House, book onto a ‘Blossom Mouse’ needle felting workshop, or join a special guided walk of the orchard with our Area Ranger, Adam. There’re opportunities to discover the poetry of Simon Armitage too, written especially for the National Trust in celebration of this glorious season.

International collection

Nymans is a mix of formal and informal areas packed full of exotic species from around the world. At 13 hectares, the garden holds one of the most comprehensive documented collections of Chilean and Argentinian species cultivated in the British Isles.

These plant introductions still surviving at Nymans today may represent genetic material that has been lost from wild populations. In the Wall Garden you’ll find plants from China and Chile, and across the road in the Wild Garden discover the Tasmanian collection.

Views and yews

At 500 ft above sea level, Nymans offers wonderful views. The lawn in front of the house is the best spot for views across the surrounding countryside, with ruins and topiary yew hedging on one side and the South Downs on the other.

Chanctonbury Ring can be seen perched on the Downs through the trees to the south west. The centrepiece is the 160-year-old Cedar of Lebanon.

Throughout the garden you'll find formal and creatively shaped topiary. Look out for yew globes around the fountain in the wall garden, topiary lions guarding the entrance, and birds on the terrace in front of the house.

Take a tour of Nymans’ garden

With informal and formal areas, exuberant planting, flower meadows and manicured lawns, the garden is constantly evolving and a joy in every season.

To help you explore it fully, we run daily guided garden tours at 11am and 2pm.

See the garden from the comfort of a buggy with one of our garden buggy tours at 11.15am, 1pm and 2.30pm. If you'd like to venture further afield and discover the estate's 250 acres of wildlife-rich woodland, join a woodland buggy tour, which run daily at 11.30am and 1.30pm. They last around 1 hour and are run by our knowledgeable volunteers.

Top garden

The deep herbaceous borders of the top garden are crammed with a range of flowers and shrubs. Fragrant and colourful, there’s something to offer in each season from snowdrops in winter to delicate poppies in summer. It’s home to a wonderful collection of trees, some dating back to 1905.

The Rose Garden

With over 600 rose bushes and 115 varieties, it’s no surprise that when in flower the scent of roses carries a long way throughout the garden, particularly on a warm summer’s day.

Filled with perfumed and repeat-flowering roses, underplanted with lavender, geranium and nepeta, the rose garden is subtly scented and has a strong visual impact. The beds are positioned to create symmetry and a feeling of order, contained within a tightly clipped circular yew hedge.

At the centre of the garden is a fountain sculpted by Vivian ap Rhys Pryce. Why not sit for a while on one of the benches, listening to the play of water and the birdsong from the trees?

The Wall Garden

From planting out in early May, until the first frosts of autumn, the display in the wall garden is a feast for all the senses.

The garden is well known for its vibrant, flamboyant mixture of flowers and has an outstanding display of bulbs in the springtime, as well as annuals, trees and shrubs throughout the summer filling every nook and cranny.

The Terrace in front of the house

With planting combining shape and texture using hardy exotics and tender annuals set against the dramatic backdrop of the ruined mansion, the architectural feel of this terrace is enhanced by tree ferns.

The South African meadow

Designed to give maximum colour, with playful textures, bold drifts and exotic planting, the South African meadow is a vibrant mix of grasses, herbaceous perennials, bulbs, daisies and annuals.

Plants have been intermingled to mimic their behaviour in the wild, dispersed in drifts to create fluidity and lead the eye around the landscape.

Exotic planting

The planting scheme is a celebration of South African flora, with many plants that are not commonly seen in the UK. Plants have been chosen that are likely to thrive within the conditions of the site with only moderate intervention.

The great British weather sometimes tests these exotic plants: the cold and damp of winter may be too much for some, but others surprise us with their resilience.

You can follow a grass path through the middle to fully experience the meadow and immerse yourself in the landscape.

Download a map of the garden before you visit.