The Sussex countryside surrounding Woodshill Byres is renowned for its collection of stately homes and gardens, offering visitors a glimpse into England’s aristocratic heritage. Parham House, a stunning Elizabethan mansion, boasts one of the country’s finest collections of paintings, furniture and textiles, set within beautiful gardens featuring a four-acre walled garden and lakeside walks.
Leonardslee Gardens presents a wonderful display of azaleas and rhododendrons cascading down wooded valleys, whilst Borde Hill Garden showcases rare trees and shrubs from around the world within its historic parkland setting. West Dean Gardens offers a fascinating glimpse into Victorian gardening, with restored glasshouses, a pergola and extensive kitchen gardens.
The National Trust properties in the area are equally impressive. Petworth House contains one of Britain’s finest art collections, including works by Turner, Van Dyck and Reynolds, surrounded by Capability Brown’s landscaped parkland. Nymans Garden, described as one of the great gardens of the Sussex Weald, features rare and beautiful plants from around the world. Standen, a remarkable Arts and Crafts house, preserves the vision of Philip Webb with original Morris & Co. interiors and furnishings.
Wakehurst Place, Kew’s country estate, combines botanic gardens with ancient woodland and meadows, whilst Sheffield Park Garden offers one of the National Trust’s most celebrated landscape gardens, particularly stunning during autumn when the trees create a magnificent tapestry of colour around the lakes.
