Glenwhan Gardens

Dunragit, Dumfries & Galloway
★★★★

Several excellent gardens jostle for attention in the fertile Galloway lowlands. Alongside big names such as Logan Botanic Garden and Castle Kennedy Gardens, this 12-acre, hilltop alternative is easy to miss. In actual fact it would measure up more than favourably in any beauty contest. Paths spider away from a large, central pond bisected by a long bridge, with flower beds close to the water’s edge and woodland behind. There’s also a beautiful Water Garden, a couple of rocky knolls acting as natural viewpoints for Luce Bay 100 metres below, a rock garden and even a peacock or two strutting around Glenwhan House. Unaided by a beautifully drawn but totally inaccurate map, you could easily pass a couple of hours or more trying (not always successfully) to find each area listed in the key; it’s a much bigger place than at first appears.