12/03/08
Go wild@Barnsdale! Presents three family fun days for 2008: Midsummer Magic, Autumn Antics and Winter wonders on 29/06/08, 13/09/08, 13/12/08 respectively. For full details, click here for our courses and events page.

25/02/08
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the 8th March 2008 Food Fayre has been cancelled. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

01/12/07
Click here for our Christmas opening times.

27/10/07
The 27th October Food Fayre has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. This event will be rescheduled during Spring 2008. The details will appear on this web site.

27/07/07
Flooding:  Contrary to news and weather stories suggesting the Midlands are flooded; Barnsdale has suffered no flooding or water damage and is open as usual.

At Tatton park, Barnsdale Gardens were part of the Gold Medal winning display in the NCCPG (National Council for the Conservation of Plants in Gardens) tent at the show. Sue was displaying her Hemerocallis.

11/07/07
Barnsdale was awarded a Silver-Gilt medal for our display at BBC Gardeners' World Live. We were doubly pleased as we played a major part in the Silver-Gilt medal awarded to the Gardeners' World Presenter's Garden.

At the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show were were exhibiting in the plant plots and amongst stiff competition, were awarded third place.

05/06/07
The latest book from barnsdale, by Nick Hamilton, 'Grow Organic' is on sale today exclusively from Barnsdale Gardens.  Official launch to be held at Gardeners' World Live.  To buy a signed copy now, click here.

22/05/07
Our Chelsea stand was awarded a silver medal. The stand is 4m X 4m and contains 43 varieties of plants as listed below:

Alchemilla mollis

Salvia x sylvestris ‘Rhapsody in Blue’

Sorbaria sorbifolia ‘Sem’

Imperata cylindrica ‘Red Baron’

Heuchera ‘Fireworks’

Campanula punctata ‘Pink Chimes’

Trifolium repens ‘Purpurascens’

Aquilegia buergeriana ‘Calimero’

Lychnis flos-cuculi ‘White Robin’

Heuchera ‘Marmalade’

Hemerocallis ‘Orangeman’

Astrantia ‘Magnum Blush’

Luzula nivea

Polemonium yezoense hidakanum ‘Purple Rain’

Persicaria bistorta ‘Superba’

Libertia grandiflora

Cirsium rivulare ‘Atropurpureum’

Iris x robusta ‘Gerald Darby’

Salvia x sylverstis ‘Mainacht’

Athyrium nipponicum var. pictum

Heuchera ‘Prince’

Lysimachia ciliata 'Firecracker'

Berberis thunbergii ‘Golden Rocket’

Tanacetum coccineum ‘Robinson’s Pink’

Asphodeline lutea

Iris setosa hybrid

Polygonatum multiflorum

Iris sibirica ‘Tropic Night’

Berberis thunbergii ‘Dart’s Red Lady’

Heuchera villosa ‘Brownies’

Ligularia dentata ‘Britt-Marie Crawford’

Centaurea montana ‘Alba’

Iris sibirica ‘Snow Prince’

Verbascum chiaxii ‘Gainsborough’

Nepeta x fassenii

Heuchera ‘Obsidian’

Argyranthemum ‘Bon Bon’

Argyranthemum ‘Ping Pong’

Polemonium reptans 'Stairway to Heaven'

Sedum ‘Xenox’

Koeleria glauca

04/05/07
We are pleased to announce that our new online shop for plants by mail order is now open. Click here to visit barnsdaleplants.co.uk.

09/10/06
We have now come to the end of a very successful show season finishing with a silver-gilt medal for our displays at the late summer and Great Autumn shows at the Royal Horticultural Society halls in Westminster, London. This bought our awards for 2006 up to a total of two golds and four silver-gilt medals. Sue is now planning for an even more successful 2007.

23/08/06
Barnsdale gardens won another gold medal at the RHS Wisley flower show.  Barnsdale Gardens will be at the RHS Late Summer Show in the Westminster Halls on 12th and 13th September.

14/06/06
Barnsdale Gardens won a gold medal at the Gardeners' World Live Exhibition for our Geoff Hamilton Cottage Garden display

23/05/06
Despite having only ten days notice, our display at this years Chelsea flower show scooped a silver-gilt medal!
Following is the list of plants used in the display at the Chelsea Flower Show 2006:
Acanthus spinosus
Ajuga reptans 'Catlin's Giant'
Alchemilla mollis
Aquilegia 'Spitfire'
Aquilegia vulgaris 'Black Barlow'
Aquilegia vulgaris 'Blue Barlow'
Asphodeline lutea
Astrantia major 'Claret'
Calycanthus floridus
Cirsium rivulare 'Atropurpureum'
Deschampsia flexuosa 'Tatra Gold'
Erysimum 'Winter Joy'
Euphorbia 'Blackbird'
Euphorbia characias 'Silver Swan'
Geranium maculatum 'Espresso'
Geranium sylvaticum 'Album'
Heuchera villosa 'Brownies'
X Heucherella 'Kimono'
Iris sibirica 'Flight of Butterflies'
Iris sibirica 'Tropic Night'
Knautia macedonica
Lavendula x christiana
Lavandula 'Tiara'
Linum perenne
Lychnis flos-cuculi 'White Robin'
Lysimachia atropurpurea 'Beaujolais'
Lycimachia ciliata 'Firecracker'
Nepeta x faassenii
Persicaria bistorta carnea
Persicaria bistorta 'Superba'
Phalaris arundinacea
Polemonium reptans 'Stairway to Heaven'
Polygonatum multiflorum
Potentilla atrosanguinea 'Goldklumpen'
Potentilla recta 'Alba'
Rhodiola rosea
Sambucus nigra 'Eva'
Semiaquilegia 'Sugar Plum Fairy'
Stipa gigantea
Thalictrum aquilegifolium
Verbascum phoeniculaceum 'Flush of White

15/05/06
We are looking for a manager/ess to run our busy licensed coffee shop. This is a full time position that will require somebody with previous catering experience. Please apply, enclosing a c.v to Barnsdale Gardens, The Avenue, Exton, Oakham, Rutland, LE15 8AH or by email at marketing@barnsdalegardens.co.uk

12/05/06
We will be exhibiting at the Chelsea Flower Show this year in the Great Pavilion. Our stand number is GPB/9 and out display will consist of cottage garden plants arranged around a bronze bust of Geoff Hamilton. If you are going to the show please come and see us.

It is with great regret that we announce the death of our vegetable supremo John Morris. He was an invaluable asset to Barnsdale and he will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing him.

01/03/06
A discount of 10% will be offered on all Hellebores until the end of March.

01/01/06
During January and February a discount of 30% will be given on all Heucheras purchased from the extensive range on offer in our nursery.

14/11/05
Food fayre at Barnsdale Gardens. Saturday 19th November 11am – 3.30pm.Free Entry.
Fine selections of food and Christmas fayre from local producers. Including Belgian chocolates, preserves & chutneys, special olives, seasonal cakes and puddings, Thai sauces, hand pressed apple juice, loaves using flour mixes for dietary requirements, and Children's books for Christmas

08/10/05
Barnsdale Gardens Nursery Great Autumn Giveaway. 40% off hundreds of shrubs, perennials and roses. Quality plants at fantastic prices for a limited period only. We need the space for our new 2006 stock so come and take advantage of this great offer. Bad weather? – Don't worry, our coffee shop serves hot food and drinks all day.

22/06/05
Matthew Biggs of BBC 4's Gardeners' Question Time will be officially opening the new Japanese garden at 11am on Saturday 25th June.  He will then be available until 1pm to answer any questions anyone would like to ask him.  Usual cost of garden entry applies.

17/06/05
At another very successful Gardeners' World Live we were awarded a silver gilt medal. Thanks to everyone who took the time to visit us.

26/05/05
We have received confirmation of allocation of outside space in the Horticultural Section at the Game Fair being held at Belvoir Castle.

24/05/05
We have received confirmation of allocation of a Plant Plot at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show.

01/04/05
We have received confirmation of allocation of a Plant Plot at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.

24/03/05
We have had no vegetable jobs to report over the last two weeks as John Morris, our vegetable supremo, had been taken ill and we have been awaiting the outcome of tests.  Unfortunately, John is seriously ill and will not be returning for a while, but he will be returning, and therefore the vegetable jobs have been taken over part time by Emma and Oliver who both already work in the gardens.  We all wish John a speedy recovery.

11/03/05
We have received confirmation of our position in the RHS Floral Marquee at the BBC Gardeners' World Live Exhibition at the NEC and we are FM91.  We will again be creating a display on a ground site measuring 20' x 20'.

25/02/05
Have been placed on the reserve list for the Floral Marquee at The Chelsea Flower Show 2005.

07/01/05
All the 'Jobs for the Week' featured in Garden News to be carried out at Barnsdale and the pictures featured in each weekly edition of the paper.  Work has just started in the garden on building the Garden News Tranquil Garden.

03/12/04
Barnsdale to be featured each week in Garden News.

29/10/04
Barnsdale has been chosen as one of the locations in the East Midlands to be used in a new Bollywood blockbuster. Filming is due to commence next week.

22/20/04
The Tranquil Garden is to become the Garden News Tranquil Garden and it's constuction will be followed in the newspaper.

17/09/04
We were awarded a Silver Gilt medal for our floral display at the RHS Great Autumn Show held on Tuesday and Wednesday in their horticultual halls in Westminster.

27/08/04
The performance of 'ART' held in the gardens was enjoyed by an audience of nearly 200 and was unanimously declared a great play and a great success.
The vegetable weekend was also a great success with many visitors taking the opportunity over the weekend to browse round areas not usually accessed by the public as well as quizzing John on all matters vegetable.

18/06/04
Our display in the floral marquee at the 2004 Gardeners' World Live Exhibition was awarded a silver medal.

29/03/04
We are to hold an outdoor performance of the play ART which has been directed by Nigel Havers.  The date of this performance is 21st August 2004 and the tickets will be priced at £15.00 per person.  It will be an outdoor event with visitors able to picnic before, during or after the performance.  This is sure to be a very popular event and numbers will be strictly limited.  More details will follow re availability of tickets, etc shortly.

05/12/03
Barnsdale Gardens is to be featured on tonights Gardeners' World as Monty Don journeys through the past to see how the Gardeners' World gardens have evolved over the past 36 years. He visits Magnolias, Barnsdale and Barleywood.

28/11/03
We have just learnt that we have yet again made it onto the Reserve List for the 2004 Chelsea Flower Show.  We will now bring on plants assuming that we will get in and keep our fingers crossed!

21/11/03
Continued work at West Bridgford. Laid woven polypropylene matting to suppress weeds and held down with pegs and erected two tier sleeper bed in one corner.  Have left the corner nearest to the Community Centre for a planted bed.

14/11/03
Started work on the memorial garden at West Bridgford, Nottingham. Work had been delayed as the ground was too hard for the turf cutter to work properly. All turf lifted and taken away and SYCAMORE suckers removed from under the Community Centre window.

07/11/03
Our application for space in the Floral Marquee at the 2004 Gardeners' World Live Exhibition has been accepted by the Royal Horticultural Society.

02/07/03
We have been approached by a group in West Bridgford, Nottingham to design and build a memorial garden for them. There was a gas explosion on their complex and some residents were killed in the blast and one block of flats was completely destroyed. They have collected a good sum of money to buy the materials, whilst we have agreed to donate all our services for free. The next stage is to visit their complex to look at the area they have so that Sue can formulate a design.

20/05/03
Barnsdale Gardens at Chelsea
We are very pleased to have been awarded a bronze medal for our first ever display at Chelsea.

17/05/03
Barnsdale Gardens at Chelsea
Our stand number in the East floral marquee is FPG17.

Our display is 3m x 3m (10' x 10') and contains a range of cottage garden plants with a special tree feature made by Anthony Williamson, a local craftsman. The tree is constructed from an old windmill handrail and will have a Golden Hop (Humulus lupulus 'Aureus') climbing through and this will give the basic tree shape live leaves and link it into the rest of the display.

The display has been designed by Sue and we will both build it at Chelsea this weekend and man the stand all week.

We have only had 6 weeks notice to prepare for the show as we were originally on the reserve list, so it's all been a bit frantic.

Plants in the display include Stipa gigantea, Veronica gentianoides, Argyranthemum 'Sweety', Corydalis 'Golden Panda', Penstemon 'Geoff Hamilton' and 'Mother of Pearl', Trifolium repens 'Dragon's Blood', Betula 'Trost's Dwarf', Osmanthus heterophyllus 'Tricolor', Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens', Heuchera 'Cappuccino', 'Prince' 'Silver Scrolls', 'Plum Pudding', 'Petitte Marble Burgundy' and 'Magic Wand', Cirsium rivulare 'Atropurpureum', Anisodontea 'Tara's Pink, Allium wallichii, Asphodeline lutea, Osteospermum 'Lemon Symphony' and Peach Symphony',etc

03/03/03
The Coffee Shop is now open every day and serving hot and cold food and drink so all facilities are open for the main season.

20/02/03
The All Year Round Organic Vegetables course on 11th March 2003 is now fully booked.

17/02/03
John Morris takes over as Vegetable Areas Supervisor fro Dave Dawkins who has moved on to pastures new. John has over 45 years of vegetable growing behind him so great things are expected!

28/01/03
We have received confirmation from the RHS that we have been accepted in the Plant Plots for The Hampton Court Palace Flower Show in July. We will be in the same position as we were in 2002, behind the Rose Marquee and near the Thames exit.

05/12/02
The date has been fixed for the second Barnsdale Gardens Garden Party. It will be held in the gardens on 20th September with part of the proceeds again going to Geoff Hamilton's New Gardeners' Foundation. Booking details and further information on the Garden Party will be posted on the web site early in the new year.

We will also be hosting a number of falconry displays courtesy of our local falconry centre and details of these will be posted on the web site as soon as dates have been confirmed.

27/11/02
Our design has been accepted for the 2003 Gardeners' World live Exhibition at the NEC, Birmingham so we will be exhibiting a 20' x 20' display in the RHS Floral Marquee.

14/11/02
We were asked by the RHS to apply for a stand at the 2003 Chelsea Flower Show. Although we have not been successful this time, we are very pleased and encouraged to have been placed on the reserve list at our first attempt!

25/10/02
Three new free screen savers have been added to the site for download. They have been made from the images used in the year 2001, 2002 and next year's 2003 calendars. Click here to go to the free download page.

09/10/02
The new book 'A Year at Barnsdale' released with the launch held here. The book has been written by Tony Hamilton with considerable help from Nick and Sue and the rest of the Barnsdale team. We are all very pleased with the finished product which makes a very good read.

25/09/02
The English Tourism Council have awarded us the, 'Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Award' for the outstanding standard of all aspects of Barnsdale Gardens as a tourist attraction.

17/09/02
Won a silver medal at the RHS Great Autumn Show held at their Westminster Halls.

28/08/02
Our application for the RHS Great Autumn Show at their Westminster Halls on 17th and 18th September 2002 was accepted.

31/07/02
Design and planting plan for Chelsea 2003 sent off to the Royal Horticultural Society.

17/07/02
Received application forms for the Chelsea Flower Show 2003.

03/07/02
A well known local artist has agreed to conduct two painting days in the gardens on the 20th August and 4th September. Further information can be obtained from the usual office number.

Set up at the Hampton Court Flower Show has been completed.

19/06/02
The display we built in the Floral Marquee at this year's Gardeners' World Live Exhibition was awarded a silver medal. It was a bit of a disappointment as our grass went prematurely brown - an unfortunate combination of getting too wet before bringing it and then the dull light of the marquee.

13/02/02
Received confirmation of acceptance for the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.

26/01/02
The entrance area around the shop and coffee shop has had tarmac laid.

09/01/02
This year we are trying out the 'Biodynamic System' with the vegetable crops, whereby they will be sown, planted and managed in accordance with the cycles of the moon. We will also be sowing and planting randomly to compare the two systems.

15/12/01
We have received confirmation of our display at the 2002 Gardeners' World live at the NEC. We have been allocated a display area in the main Floral Marquee at FM20

12/09/01
Voice-over for 'A Year at Geoff Hamilton's Barnsdale Gardens' video was completed in one session. We are still on course for release 1st November.

29/08/01
BBC East Midlands Today have been and filmed in the gardens for their 'Up the Garden Path' slot broadcast on Friday 31st August 2001.

Barnsdale Gardens to be featured on the BBC1 programme 'Songs of Praise', presented by Penelope Keith, on 9th September.

06/07/01
Penelope Keith came to do a reading in the Garden for 'Songs of Praise' to be broadcast on 9th Sept.

Built display for 'Plant plot' at Hampton Court palace Flower Show - early signs are for a good show.

16/06/01
Filming taking place for ITV's 'Sunday Morning' programme to be featured probably on the 23rd July.

Visit by a researcher from the BBC 'Songs of Praise' programme with regard to filming for that series.

12/06/01
Built 'Compass Garden' at BBC Gardeners' World Live Exhibition on Sunday and Monday - Garden designed and all plants arranged by Sue. Awarded silver medal! First two days of the Show were very, very busy. Plants sent to Show for sale every day - one van load per day! Sue interviewed at Show by BBC Radio Leicester for their 'Down to Earth' Saturday morning programme.

New Shop opened and in full use.

06/06/01
Coffee Shop extension finished just in time for planned Pippa Greenwood visit!

12/03/01
Position of display for Gardeners' World Live Exhibition allocated by the RHS and we are in the main Floral Marquee right next to the RHS Information stand (no stand number as of yet).
The Thames Valley Horticultural Society will be staging a garden at the Chelsea Flower Show in May entitled 'Time for Reflection' which has been inspired by Geoff and the gardens at Barnsdale. This garden will be situated in the Courtyard Gardens area of the show.

16/01/01
We began renovation and maintenance of the drought garden designed by Geoff for Anglian Water at Rutland Water.