Join garden writer and popular Kirker tour leader, Kirsty Fergusson as she opens the gates to some very special Sussex and Kent gardens, for a spectacular display of midsummer colour and contrasts. The tour includes three private gardens, rarely open to the public, as well a special after hours visit to Great Dixter with Fergus Garrett. Accompanied by owners and head gardeners, we hear their stories and delve behind the scenes, discovering plants and techniques to inspire - or simply admire.

The Hotel

We will stay for the duration of the tour at Ockenden Manor (4*), a fine Elizabethan manor house with 28 elegant rooms, an awardwinning restaurant and a wood-panelled bar, as well as an extensive modern spa with indoor-outdoor swimming pool. Set in eight acres of beautiful grounds overlooking Cuckfield Park, it is just ten minutes’ from Haywards Heath station by taxi and under an hour by train from London.