Spring is the perfect time to reconnect with gardens. County Wicklow, known as The Garden of Ireland, boasts some of the country’s finest, including Mount Usher, Kilmacurragh Botanic Gardens, Killruddery, and Powerscourt—ranked the third-best garden in the world by National Geographic.
Wicklow also hides some charming secret gardens and peaceful outdoor spaces. Below is a list of garden gems, offering diverse experiences and acres of natural beauty. Some are open by appointment only, so check their pages or call ahead for opening times and details.
June Blake’s Garden
June Blake’s Garden is a critically-acclaimed spot in West Wicklow and a little slice of heaven in our county. Surrounded by woodland and beautiful countryside, June’s Victorian cottage and garden is remote and almost mythic in how it is all laid out over 3 gorgeous rural acres. June offers her famous Garden Tours to newcomers, a large selection of plants are available for sale, you can enjoy a picnic in the garden and for wanting an overnight stay, there is the option of staying at one of the restored farm buildings – The Cowhouse or The Turkey House.
Hunting Brook Garden
International speaker, TV presenter, author and self-confessed “plant nerd” Jimi Blake has one of the largest private plant collections in Ireland, was given a special feature on Gardener’s World and shares his passion for plants via his various workshops and lectures. Spanning over 20 acres and including a wild variety of plants – from tropical gardens to cactus, wild meadows and a valley. A visit to Jimi Blakes is an absolute must for both gardening enthusiasts and people eager to learn more about horticulture.
Walled Garden at Russborough House
Opening over a decade ago, Walled Gardens of Russborough was formerly an old walled garden. Now, it has been beautifully restored by volunteers. The garden has a wide range of herbaceous plants – apple trees, strawberries, vegetables et al. Cultivated to make jams and food, generating income for the family-run house. Russborough also has an impressive array of art collectibles connected to various local art, sport, and music events.
Wren’s Wood Garden
Wren’s Wood first opened it’s doors back in 1990. The Shamrock All-Garden award-winning space has over 6 hectares of secluded nature-friendly woodland garden, with streams and an ancient ring-fort and lots of interesting wildlife. In Ashford, Wren’s Wood is perhaps the most accessible and easy to reach gardens on the list. Alexander and Lydia are excellent hosts, tour-guides and genuinely enjoy engaging with visitors while sharing Wren’s Wood Garden’s history.
The Old Rectory Garden & Textile Printing Studio
The Old Rectory Garden is an eco-friendly and sustainable printing studio operated by Joanna Sloan and located in Dunganstown in Wicklow. It is a ‘Garden of Life’ boasting a working kitchen garden, a long herbaceous border of perennials, an orchard of fruit trees, bees and hens, a woodland walk and a parkland walk amid ancient beech, rhododendrons and acers set against a commanding view towards Lugnaquilla.
Gorse Hill
Gorse Hill can be described as an open air gallery inviting visitors to absorb what you see, smell and hear. Gorse Hill is a steeply terraced garden of approximately four acres overlooking the Irish Sea. Family owned for over fifty years, the garden has filled out with mature Cordyline trees, New Zealand flax’s, Fuchsias, giant Echiums and many more plants that can withstand a seaside environment.
Festina Lente Gardens
built in the 1780’, Festina Lente is the largest working Victorian Walled Garden in Ireland and contains many beautiful features and stunning fauna and flora. There are three main areas that have been restored all within the original Victorian walls: Ornamental Formal Garden, Pool Garden & Terrapin Sanctuary and the Working Kitchen Gardens.
Hunters Hotel Gardens
This prize-winning garden, situated on the banks of the Vartry River has a spectacular display of oriental poppies in May and June. Many other interesting perennials are featured in box-edged borders. Trees and shrubs include magnolias, rhododendron, specimens, lirodendron, nothofagus, eucryphias, podocarpus, abutilon, fremontedendron, ginkgo, paulownia etc. The large kitchen garden provides fruit and vegetables for the hotel.
Dorlindon Nature Sanctuary
Dorlindon Nature Sanctuary, just outside Kilmacanogue in County Wicklow, is a captivating woodland hideaway nestled among small lakes and islets less than 30 minutes from Dublin. It blends magical, fantasy‑themed handcrafted elements—like elven domes, log bridges, shrines, and rustic stone structures—with pristine forest and wetland habitats.
Ideal for intimate gatherings, guided wildlife walks, crafts, bushcraft workshops, wildlife education, or themed corporate events, Dorlindon provides a deeply immersive natural retreat in the heart of the Wicklow Lowlands.
