Visiting the garden at Chirk Castle

A Garden for All Seasons

Loose gravelled pathways weave through the garden, allowing you to explore easily throughout the year and enjoy its key features whatever the weather.

You’ll discover extensive lawns, exuberant annual herbaceous borders, formal hedges, conical topiary, a rockery, the Hawk House and even an area of woodland. An accessible route also makes the garden easy to navigate with wheelchairs, Trampers and pushchairs.

Summer highlights in the garden at Chirk Castle

 

Enjoy the sights of summer at Chirk Castle as the garden bursts into colour and fragrance. A stunning variety of roses are on display in the borders and the rose garden including Rosa ’Golden Celebration’ and Rosa ‘Jubilee Celebration’. 

The summer borders around the Hawk House have varieties of cistus and the spectacular foxtail lilies.  

Experience the amazing scent of the Lime Tree Avenue and listen out for the extraordinary soft buzz of the bees. 

Find a seat in the shrub garden and watch for the dragonflies giving an aerial display or spot our gardeners as they carry out their annual task of trimming the extensive topiary throughout September.  

The formal garden

The topiary

As you enter the garden, you are greeted by the distinctive yew topiary, introduced in 1872 by Richard Myddelton Biddulph. The hedges are shaped to represent castellated walls, while the conical topiary is said to resemble traditional Welsh ladies’ hats. At the edge of the lawn, look out for a feature known as ‘the crown in the cushion’, where you’ll find a bench perfectly placed for a rest.

Keeping the topiary in shape is a major annual task. Each late summer, a team of gardeners and volunteers spends six to eight weeks trimming the hedges using electric shears, ladders and a cherry picker.

The Rose Garden

Lady Margaret Myddelton was particularly fond of roses, especially those with strong scent and soft colouring. Many of her favourites can still be found in the garden today, including ‘Dearest’ with its delicate pink blooms, ‘Allgold’ in bright golden yellow and the salmon‑pink ‘Elizabeth of Glamis’.

Roses appear throughout the garden, from tall climbers such as Rosa ‘Madame d’Arblay’, with its softly scented, carnation‑like flowers, to robust shrub roses including Rosa ‘Blanc Double de Coubert’. You’ll also spot classic English varieties such as ‘Golden Celebration’ and ‘Jubilee Celebration’, which all provide colour, structure and fragrance from late spring and throughout summer.

Statues

Overlooking the castle at the top of Lime Avenue is Hercules, a statue commissioned in the 1720s by Robert Myddelton and believed to have been sculpted by John van Nost, a prolific Flemish artist.

It was once located outside the castle’s main north entrance with a figure of Mars as a companion. But in June 1770, both were moved by landscape gardener William Emes into outlying woodland.  Rediscovered and severely damaged, Hercules was rescued in 1983 and winched by helicopter to Lime Avenue and later restored by the Trust. Mars has never been found.

Also located throughout the garden are four Art Nouveau bronze nymph statues. Titled Destiny (left of the steps), Vanishing Dream (right of the steps), Oblivion (by the pond) and Flower of Fancy (end of the main path) were made by sculptor Andrea Carlo Lucchesi (1860-1924). The statues were bought by Lord and Lady Howard de Walden, who leased the castle from the Myddelton family from 1911 to 1946. See if you can spot them all as you explore.

The Main Avenue

Long Border 

This curved border has seasonal areas and is filled with shrubs and herbaceous plants. Planted by Lady Margaret Myddelton after the Second World War, it was created as a low‑maintenance way to ensure colour and scent throughout the year.

Follow the gentle curve of the border and linger awhile, taking in the layered planting and changing waves of colour and scent through the seasons. Look out for irises and the daffodil lawn in spring, salvias and red‑hot pokers in summer, and snowdrops in winter.

The Hawk House

The Hawk House was built in 1854 to a design by E.W. Pugin. Originally a conservatory, it was modified in the 1920s by Lord Howard de Walden, who added a thatched roof to house birds of prey.

Here you’ll find sheltered seating and a rockery with seasonal colour, including alpine planting and dwarf rhododendrons. It’s a peaceful spot to sit for a while, listen to birdsong and enjoy a quieter moment away from the crowds.

The Ha Ha

The historic ha‑ha at the bottom of the garden was built by landscape designer and gardener William Emes between 1760–61. Largely unchanged since then, it remains a clever barrier, keeping livestock out of the garden without obstructing the view.

Some of the best views can be found here. You can spot the Peckforton Hills, Shropshire’s Wenlock Edge and The Wrekin, with views stretching as far as the Peak District on a clear day.

Pleasure Ground Wood

This formal area of woodland is right next to the main garden and is bisected by pathways arranged to provide easy and peaceful walking routes. It was created in the 1650s as part of Sir Thomas Myddelton’s grand designs. In late winter, the woodland floor is carpeted with an incredible display of snowdrops, followed by a sea of delicate bluebells in spring.

The Shrub garden

The rhododendrons found here bring vibrant colour and they smell wonderful after a spring shower. In early summer, the handkerchief tree is a highlight, with its elegant white bracts, followed by the pink and blue tones of hydrangeas in midsummer. In autumn, expect deep red acers and rich, toasty colour throughout the area.

The pond

The pond is home to a variety of wildlife, including mayflies, dragonflies and smooth, palmate and great crested newts. Planting around the pond includes the water lily ‘Albatross’ and ‘Cyperus longifolia’, adding interest to this calm area of the garden.

The Stumpery

Created in spring 2023, the stumpery sits at the lower end of the Shrub Garden, where the light softens and the character of the garden subtly changes. Framed by the ‘Nun’s Gate’ as its focal point, this shaded corner features tree stumps set among ferns, laurels and hollies, creating a glade‑like atmosphere beneath the canopy.

Leaf mould is added to the soil to help retain moisture and improve structure, providing the low‑light conditions suited to fern planting and supporting this quieter, more sheltered part of the garden.

Places to rest in the garden

Dotted along the pathways and on the lawn, you’ll find benches to rest and indulge your senses. The Hawk House provides additional sheltered seating. In the summer months bring a picnic blanket to relax upon the lawn.

The Kitchen garden

Separate to the main formal garden, a small Kitchen garden sits behind the Squash Court near Home Farm. Here there is a small orchard and vegetable plots with a range of seasonal vegetables that are often sold through the retail shop. You’ll also find picnic tables, making it an ideal location to stop, rest and soak in the views of the Ceiriog Valley.

Garden history

Just as Chirk Castle has evolved over the centuries - from medieval fortress to family home - so too has the garden that surrounds it.

The first formal garden was laid out in 1653 by Sir Thomas Myddelton II, influenced by the French styles fashionable among the country’s leading families at the time.

In 1764, Richard Myddelton commissioned landscape architect William Emes to reshape both the gardens and the wider parkland. Emes made sweeping changes, moving walls, fences and pathways, and planting vast lawns and thousands of trees to create the open views and natural flow still appreciated today.

During the 19th century, yew topiary, hedges and wrought‑iron gates were introduced. In the early 20th century, under the guidance of Lord Howard de Walden, the celebrated gardener Norah Lindsay created a magnificent herbaceous border on the Upper Lawn, bringing colour and refinement to the garden.

The gardens fell into decline during the Second World War, before being revived almost single‑handedly by Lady Margaret Myddelton. The garden today reflects the colourful planting schemes she established, now maintained by a dedicated team of gardeners and volunteers.