There’s a rare opportunity to enjoy the glorious gardens and grounds of historic Flete House on Sunday, when the estate, near Modbury, welcomes visitors to raise funds for St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth. The stunning 12 acres of elegantly landscaped parkland grounds, include charming Italianate gardens, a well-stocked shrubbery, water gardens, and a host of impressive specimen trees that take pride of place on the garden map, and there are panoramic views of the picturesque South Hams countryside.
A stunning selection of gardens in West Devon, the South Hams and East Cornwall will be opening their gates once again in aid of local hospice care.
St Luke’s annual Open Gardens scheme is launching in March, providing avid horticulture fans the opportunity to explore amazing private plots, large and small, many not usually open to the public, while supporting our end of life care in your local community. All proceeds from the ticket sales will be playing a vital role in helping us to meet the rising costs of our dedicated care teams offering free specialist hospice care, when and where it is needed.
This year’s programme, running through to September and kindly sponsored by NFU Mutual Plymouth, promises plenty of inspiration for keen gardeners, as well as a proper treat for anyone who enjoys a fresh air outing in a beautiful environment.
Wayne Marshall, St Luke’s Open Gardens Co-ordinator, said: “We are really excited to kickstart the 2024 Open Gardens season. We have chosen a diverse selection of beautiful gardens to inspire and delight, many of which are not normally open to the public, so offer a unique insight into garden design.
“This year we are honoured and delighted that the highly successful local artist and St Luke’s patron, Brian Pollard has kindly created such an enchanting image for the cover of our Open Gardens brochure.
“Excitingly, Brian has generously donated to St Luke’s the framed original acrylic painting and we are including it as an amazing prize in our Open Gardens raffle, so be sure to buy your tickets when you visit one of the gardens.”
The artwork is currently on display at Kaya Gallery, Plymouth where you can also buy raffle tickets for either £1 or £5 for a book.
Stretching from the outskirts of Plymouth right across our catchment area in the South Hams, Dartmoor, West Devon and just over the border into Cornwall – from Kingsbridge to Lewdown, there will be a varied selection of popular gardens opening during the season alongside some exciting new additions, including the beautifully unique The Garden House in Yelverton on Thursday 18 April and Wednesday 14 August and Highwell in Churchstow, offering five acres of wonderful garden spaces on Sunday 12 May.
Highlights of the season include a special Easter Sunday opening of Gnaton Hall, near Yealmpton and a familiar favourite of the landscaped grounds of the Grade One listed Flete House, near Ermington, which will be opening on Sunday 28 July between 12pm and 5pm.
There’s no need to book in advance for any of the gardens – just turn up on the allotted date and time and follow the orange St Luke’s signs to car parking and the gardens themselves and pay on the gate with cash or contactless card; tickets cost £6 and under-16s have free entry.
Once again we will be working in partnership with the team at Drake’s Island to provide guided tours. Set in the beautiful surroundings of Plymouth Sound, Drake’s Island boasts unique views across Cornwall, the city and beyond. Funds from the ticket sales will go to St Luke’s, apart from a small booking fee. Tickets will be available exclusively here.
Wayne added: “As a charity, we couldn’t survive without the kindness of all our supporters. This includes everyone who attends our Open Gardens, the big-hearted garden owners who welcome them, and not forgetting our proud sponsors NFU Mutual Plymouth. Together over the last 14 years that the scheme has been running, more than £540,000 has been raised for our patient care, which is incredible, thank you.”
You can pick up a copy of our Open Gardens 2024 brochure and view the full list of gardens on offer at any of our charity shops, at local garden centres and supporting businesses, or you can download it online here.
Stunning gardens open their gates to raise funds for hospice care
A sensational selection of beautiful gardens in West Devon, the South Hams and East Cornwall are once again throwing open their gates to raise funds for our compassionate end of life care for local people.
Our Open Gardens scheme is an annual favourite for horticulture fans who revel in the chance to explore amazing private plots, large and small, many not usually open to the public, while supporting our care at the same time. Cash raised from ticket sales plays a vital part in helping us to meet the rising cost of our dedicated care teams offering free specialist hospice care, when and where it is needed.
Launching the 2023 season on Mother’s Day – Sunday 19 March – is the grand Gnaton Hall, near Yealmpton, which boasts a spectacular five acres, packed with daffodils and grand Magnolia trees, plus walled gardens, terraced lawns and woodland walks. With plenty of time to explore this amazing plot between 2pm and 5pm, visitors can try to spot the elusive Elmer the Patchwork Elephant in the grounds, enjoy cakes and refreshments and purchase a wide selection of homegrown plants.
This year’s programme, running through to September and kindly sponsored by NFU Mutual Plymouth, promises plenty of inspiration for keen gardeners, as well as a proper treat for anyone who enjoys a fresh air outing in a beautiful environment.
The list features many perennially popular gardens, plus several exciting new additions to the roster, stretching from the outskirts of Plymouth right across our catchment area in the South Hams, Dartmoor, West Devon and just over the border into Cornwall – from Kingsbridge to Lewdown.
The magnificent landscaped grounds of the Grade One listed Flete House, near Ermington, opening on Sunday 30 July, are always a glowing highlight of the season. Fresh for 2023, there’s also a new Hidden Village trail around a series of private gardens in Mary Tavy, a moorland village north of Tavistock, opening between 11am and 4pm on Sunday 4 June, where taking time to chat with the garden owners will be part of the fun.
There’s no need to book in advance for any of the gardens – just turn up on the allotted date and time and follow the orange St Luke’s signs to car parking and the gardens themselves and pay on the gate with cash or contactless card; under-16s have free entry.
An added bonus this year is the chance to buy a series of four striking, limited-edition nature-inspired linocut prints, specially created for our Open Gardens by acclaimed Calstock artist Peter Ursem – one of which features on this year’s brochure cover. The gorgeous colour-soaked prints are available from his website at www.peterursem.co.uk and Peter will generously be donating 50 per cent of sales proceeds to St Luke’s. The artist will also be holding an open studio day to coincide with the Gunnislake Village Open Gardens on Sunday 25 June.
Wayne Marshall, St Luke’s Open Gardens Co-ordinator, said: “It’s exciting to be back with another diverse selection of beautiful gardens to inspire and delight visitors. Many of our featured gardens are hidden gems not normally open to the public, so visiting is a rare chance for you to get an insight into garden planning and planting schemes.
“As a charity, we couldn’t survive without the kindness of all our supporters. This includes everyone who attends our Open Gardens, the big-hearted garden owners who welcome them, and not forgetting our proud sponsors NFU Mutual Plymouth.”
You can pick up a copy of our Open Gardens 2023 brochure at any of our charity shops, at local garden centres and supporting businesses, or you can download it online here.
Always an annual highlight, our Open Gardens season feels even more special this time around. That’s because 2022 is our 40th anniversary year!
We simply couldn’t have reached this milestone without the kindness of all our supporters. This includes everyone who attends our Open Gardens and, of course, the big-hearted people who throw open their beautiful gardens to welcome them. Together, over the 12 years the scheme has been running, you have raised more than £429,000 to help local families receive our charity’s compassionate care, and we couldn’t be more grateful.
A huge thank you to NFU Mutual Plymouth for sponsoring this year’s scheme – please look out for their stand at our gardens this season.
Whether you’re a green-fingered guru or someone who simply enjoys being outside in the beauty of nature, we’ve got a diverse selection of enchanting gardens to delight and inspire you this season. Many of our featured gardens are hidden gems not normally open to the public, so visiting is a rare chance for you to get an insight into garden planning and planting schemes. For a Mothering Sunday treat, we have the opening of Gnaton Hall’s spectacular spring gardens on 27 March. Come and explore this private estate and enjoy tea and cake on the lawns.
Enjoy over five acres. which include a spectacular display of daffodils, walled gardens and grand Magnolia trees. Peaceful woodland walks surround the terraced lawns, where a selection of delicious cakes will be served.
Approached through its pretty hamlet of thatched cottages, Mothecombe has a formal walled garden with a terrace by Sir Edwin Lutyens. A gravel walk through the orchard and bluebell woods, planted with a wide variety interesting trees and shrubs, leads past the bog gardens and down to the private beach.
The enigmatic and fascinating Flete House is surrounded with elegantly landscaped parkland estate. The Italianate gardens, shrubbery and water gardens are complimented by some excellent specimen trees and panoramic views of the beautiful South Hams. Join us for exclusive access to the private and historic Devon estate.
These and all our other Open Gardens provide an enjoyable and inspiring way for our supporters to raise vital funds for local hospice care. Please let your family and friends know so that they can visit, too. The more people who support our events, the more families St Luke’s can help across Plymouth, West Devon and East Cornwall.
Tickets are available on the day, and we have a contactless payment facility as well as accepting cash. Entry is free for under-16s. We aim to offer refreshments and plant sales at all our gardens, where possible.
On behalf of all of us at St Luke’s – and everyone we look after- a big thank-you to our visitors, garden owners and volunteers who make our Open Gardens scheme so popular and successful.
For directions and details visit our Open Gardens webpage.
Always an annual highlight, our popular Open Gardens season once again delighted crowds of visitors between late March to mid-September, bringing in vital funds to help us keep delivering our much-needed service for patients and their families.
This year’s season was extra special, being the tenth in its history! And from it’s opening at spectacular Gnaton Hall on Mothering Sunday – which raised over £5,000 – to its close at beautiful Bowringsleigh Gardens, it provided many enjoyable, inspiring days out across Devon and Cornwall for green-fingered gurus and those who simply wanted to take time to smell the roses.
In honour of a decade of Open Gardens, this year’s brochure cover design was kindly created especially for St Luke’s by our Patron, much-loved artist Brian Pollard. The original painting was then raffled in aid of our charity, raising over £3,500 and with the lucky winner being from Harrow Barrow, one of the villages that participates in Open Gardens.
With its winning combination of gorgeous gardens big and small, picturesque walks and plant sales, plus the raffle, this season has raised £44,028 for our charity, bringing the total raised through Open Gardens’ ten-year history to over £370,000 – a blooming fantastic total that is making a big difference to those we care for at home, in hospital and at our specialist unit.
Such is the popularity of our horticultural extravaganza that garden owners are already signing up for our 2020 season, with 18 gardens confirmed, including two newcomer village walkabouts, at Shaw Prior and Halton Quay Gardens. Look out for another bespoke design for our brochure cover, too – Kingsbridge artist Jennifer Cooper is kindly doing the honours!
Wayne Marshall, Community Fundraiser and Open Gardens Co-ordinator, said: “What’s so fantastic about Open Gardens is the way it brings communities together in a big team effort to proudly showcase their lovely gardens for such a special cause. From the garden owners who generously throw open their gates to welcome visitors to the big-hearted bakers who create the delicious cakes on offer, I never cease to be encouraged by the swell of support I see for St Luke’s.
“A huge thank you to everyone who ensured our tenth year was such a big success. We really appreciate everything you do.”
The sun was shining on Flete Estate at the beginning of the month for our Open Garden, as we raised a record amount for patient care.
1058 visitors were treated to exclusive access to the private and historic estate in Ivybridge on Sunday 2 July, spending the day exploring the Italianate gardens, shrubbery and water gardens under blue skies and brilliant sunshine.
The afternoon raised an incredible £9,030 for patient care, £2,350 more than in 2015, when we last held an Open Garden at Flete Estate.
A big part of the total came from the selection of delicious cakes that had been donated, making an amazing £2,864.10 towards the total for the day. Raffle, plant and merchandise sales all helped contribute to the final amount as well.
Special thanks to all the volunteers who worked hard to make the day run so smoothly, especially those who were helping out at the Neon Midnight Walk the previous night. We even had submariners from HMS Vanguard and staff from the Land Registry Office helping out as parking volunteer marshals.
The historic estate was used by the city of Plymouth as a maternity hospital during and after the Second World War; with many attendees on the day having actually been born there themselves.
If you couldn’t make it to the Flete Open Gardens this year, then we will be planning to open Flete Estate Gardens again in 2019.
St Luke’s Open Gardens will be continuing throughout August and September, with upcoming gardens including Diptford Village Walkabout on Sunday 6 August between 1.30pm and 5.30pm, Alpine House in Bere Ferrers on Sunday 13 August between 11am and 4pm, Blanksmill in West Alvington on Sunday 3 September between 2pm and 5pm and Lower Charaton Cottage in Pensilva, Cornwall, on Sunday 10 September between 2pm and 5pm. We also have a selection of private gardens opening by appointment up until early November. To see the full Open Garden listings click here.
