Tapeley Park & Gardens

Tapeley Park sits high on a hill overlooking the River Torridge and the North Devon coast, between Bideford and Barnstaple near the village of Instow. Its gardens are Grade II* listed and are open to visitors through the main season. The house has been home to the Christie family for two centuries, and today the estate's custodian, Hector Christie, runs it with a strong focus on sustainability and organic growing.

The gardens fall into a few distinct parts. Near the house are the Italianate terraces, created when Lady Rosamond Christie remodelled the house and laid out the gardens from the late 19th century. There is a working kitchen garden, which supplies organic produce such as pumpkins and squash sold in the gift shop in autumn, and a permaculture garden that shows a very different, low-input way of growing. A walk through the wood leads to a lake concealed in a valley surrounded by old woodland, some dating back around 180 years, with fir, cypress, oak and beech and some of the oldest Thuja plicata trees in the country. Beside the lake is a statue of a mourning lady, put up by a grieving mother for her son Archibald Clevland.

For gardeners, the contrast between the formal terraces and the permaculture and kitchen gardens is the main lesson. Tapeley is family and dog friendly, with dogs welcome on leads, and there is a tea room with indoor and outdoor seating. Some parts, such as the woodland walk to the lake and the fields to the monument, may not suit wheelchairs or walkers. There is no need to book; just buy tickets on arrival.