Hidcote

Hidcote, on the Cotswold edge above Chipping Campden, is the garden that Lawrence Johnston, an American-born officer, began on farmland in 1907 and filled over 40 years with finds from plant-hunting trips to China and South Africa. In 1948 it became the first place the National Trust took on purely for its garden, and its scheme of outdoor rooms divided by yew and hornbeam hedges has been copied worldwide. The rooms run from the Red Borders and the Stilt Garden to the Bathing Pool Garden and the Long Walk, with woodland paths, lawn games and plenty of benches beyond. Reviewers describe it as a maze worth tracking so you miss nothing, and praise the two cafes and the plant centre. Tips from visitors: parking is free with an overflow field, dogs on short leads are welcome except in the Old Garden, and summer weekends and coach parties make it busy, so come early or mid-afternoon after the coaches leave. Kiftsgate Court garden is next door.