Digging Our District's Gardens

For inspiring ideas, there’s plenty to explore at Gresgarth Hall, near Caton, home to Arabella Lennox-Boyd, an award-winning garden designer, whose clients have included Sting and Sir Terence Conran.

Open on the second Sunday of the month from February to November, the Gresgarth garden features terraces, a lake, woods and a serpentine walk among its many attractions which have featured on television several times.

When it comes to internationally renowned garden designers, the area can boast another who left his mark – Thomas Mawson who was based in Lancaster.

From the late 19th Century into the 20th Century, Mawson had commissions from home and abroad, becoming the founding president of the Institute of Landscape Architects.

Much of his work around the district is in private hands including Grey Walls and Hazelwood in Silverdale but the gardens at Capernwray Hall near Carnforth can be enjoyed by those attending the Bible School and Christian holidays there. In the Lake District, Brockhole and Rydal Hall are among Mawson’s designs and he was also responsible for the public park in Barrow and Stanley Park in Blackpool.

One of Mawson’s most notable works in Lancaster is the Westfield Memorial Village, conceived by him after losing his son in World War One. It was built for disabled ex-servicemen and is still thriving to this day.

Westfield was built on land owned by Herbert Lushington Storey, whose family were among Lancaster’s most important industrialists and philanthropists. They also gave The Storey to the city and it’s there that visitors can discover some ‘secret’ gardens.

The Storey Gardens, which are open Monday-Saturday for free, are a peaceful oasis in the midst of a busy city and as well as featuring an impressive array of plants, flowers and trees, also include contemporary public artwork, The Tasting Garden.

At the nearby Lancaster Priory, the baptism took place of a woman who was truly inspired by plants and gardens – Mary Fielding (nee Simpson).

A botanist and illustrator, Fielding painted detailed watercolours of local flora and from 1830-1833 she produced six volumes of botanical watercolours which are considered so influential that they are in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.

Mary would have had a field day visiting the many gardens now open to the public. Across Lancashire and Cumbria there are 85 open as part of the National Garden Scheme in 2026 including Park House at Barbon near Kirkby Lonsdale(July 11 &12); Mawsons at Silverdale(July 18) and Fell Yeat at Casterton(August 16&17).

Lancaster can also boast two community garden projects at Claver Hill and The Fairfield Millennium Green and Community Orchard both open to the public all year round.

Claver Hill covers six acres on the edge of Lancaster and features two nature trails and many varied initiatives including beekeeping and a flower farm while Fairfield is close to the city centre and has an orchard hosting more than 100 trees.

The newest public garden on the block has been brought to Morecambe direct from the Chelsea Flower Show.

The Bring Me Sunshine Garden on Morecambe Promenade provides a tantalising glimpse into the future Eden Project Morecambe due to open in 2028.

This new garden, part of the celebrations to mark Eric Morecambe’s centenary, won a silver gilt medal at Chelsea and reflects the coastal landscapes, seaside heritage and communities of Morecambe Bay.

And if all these gardens inspire their visitors to try creating their own, the district can boast a wealth of garden centres and nurseries, happy to offer advice and plenty of choice for green-fingered growers of flowers, plants, trees, fruit and veg.