Arbigland House and Gardens, together with their Holiday Cottages, lie in a spectacular setting, on a promontory south of Dumfries in Scotland. The House looks out to the sea on three sides. The Holiday Cottages are in the adjacent Stableyard. The Gardens consist of 24 acres of mainly woods with more formal sections, including a Sunken Garden where the old Arbigland Hall stood. Recent photos of the gardens can be found via the TripAdvisor link below.
The basic form of the Gardens is 18th Century, with a straight 1/3rd of a mile Broad Walk running from the house down to the beach on the Solway Firth. Many of the trees lining the Broad Walk our over 200 years old and at the end of the Walk there is a panoramic view across to the Lake District fells.
The formal gardens are divided into distinct areas, including a Sundial Garden with a Sundial from 1815 commemorating the battle of Waterloo; a Sunken Garden with roses and a Pavilion built by Italian Prisoners of War; a Well Head Garden with unusual plants and trees; a substantial Lake with an Island and a Japanese Garden with a variety of Acers and Cherries.
Areas under development include steep terraces down the sea inspired by the slopes of Bodnant Garden in Wales and a Gunnera Walk along an existing stream inspired by the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall.
Though never as “lost” as those Lost Gardens, the beds and walks throughout Arbigland had become overgrown. Restoration and development are now well underway. There is still much to do, and we hope that some of the attraction of walking round the Gardens will be looking at “work in progress”.
Light refreshments and toilet facilities are available at the neighbouring John Paul Jones Museum.