Gardens of Ireland - Part 2

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After two nights in Belfast, we travelled south to Dublin where our first stop was at the Botanical Gardens. There wasn’t time to see everything so I concentrated on the herbaceous borders, rock garden, grass garden and glasshouses. As with Belfast, the glasshouses have recently been restored – this is the Temperate House.

If anything, the borders were even better than in Belfast

I spotted this crocosmia which would go well in my foliage garden – it’s a variety called ‘Coleton Fishacre’

And I liked this massed planting of hardy lobelias

From there we went to Killruddery. The house has been in the same family since 1618 and the gardens date from the same period. This was at a time when landscape rather than flowers was the norm although there is a small flower garden plus a large kitchen garden undergoing restoration.

Hidden behind hedges is this outdoor theatre but given how wet Ireland can be, I don’t think sitting on the grass would have happened very often!

The most impressive plant in the garden was this large specimen of luma appiculata, a myrtle relative from South America

The following morning we visited Corke Lodge, a private garden a few miles from the city. This was a woodland garden containing architectural stonework salvaged from large houses being demolished.

I liked this garden despite the lack of colour. You need to be very disciplined to have a garden this green but it might be too dreary to live with for long periods.

We had a quick stop on Phoenix Park back in Dublin where the walled vegetable garden has recently been restored.

Although there are some flowers in there as well

The Dillon Garden is well publicised, but would it prove to be an anti-climax? You know which is the right house from the simple but elegant front garden.

But even here are special plants such as roscoea ‘Red Gurkha’.

You enter through the house and view the rear garden from the drawing room on the first floor

But you don’t see all the garden at one glance, there are lots of hidden corners and views

And everywhere there are special plants.

Diascia ‘Denim Blue’

Brunnera ‘Langtrees’

And this colchicum

This garden rightly lives up to its billing and is a must-see if you are in Dublin.

To be continued ….

• 29 Aug, 2012
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