Drummond Gardens

Drummond Castle Gardens sit below a castle on a steep rocky ridge near Muthill, south of Crieff, and the first view is the reason people come. You walk through the outer court into the inner courtyard, reach the top of the terraces, and the whole garden suddenly opens out below. Historic Environment Scotland describes it as the best example of formal terraced gardens in Scotland, and it has stood in for the gardens of Versailles in Outlander.

The parterre is laid out as a St Andrew's Cross, with the multiplex sundial of 1630 at its centre. Scots thistles and daggers from the Drummond coat of arms are worked into the design. A strong north-south line runs down the steps, through the sundial, through a classical archway and the kitchen garden beyond, then up the hillside opposite, an idea borrowed from French gardens, while the fountains, urns, statuary and terraces are Italian in feel. Look for the ancient yew hedges and the copper beech planted by Queen Victoria in 1842. A short woodland walk in Daggan Wood gives views back to the castle and keep.

For gardeners, Drummond is a lesson in structure and symmetry, and in how clipped shapes and long axes make a garden feel bigger. The castle itself is not open, but the gardens are, and dogs on leads are welcome. There are steep steps from the top; ask at the ticket office about the lower entrance and the suggested wheelchair route on firmer grass paths. Little Red in the inner courtyard serves coffee and home baking.