Enjoy the Tranquility of Threave Estate

Located on Threave Estate, just west of Castle Douglas in Dumfries and Galloway, Threave Garden offers a spectacular show of colourful flowers that change with the seasons. In the springtime, the daffodils take centre-stage, giving way to multi-coloured herbaceous beds in summer, and masses of heather in the autumn months. An informal rose garden is one of the highlights of this tranquil destination, and a walled garden, complete with glasshouse, is dedicate to plants and flowers with more temperate climatic requirements. There are several ponds and attractive water features, as well as a rock garden for visitors to enjoy.

As a wildfowl refuge and home to wintering waterfowl and breeding waders, the estate is designated as both a Special Protection Area (SPA) and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI). Nature lovers will enjoy the network of trails that wind their way through the variety of landscapes and can make use of the strategically placed hides to observe the birds and other wildlife, of which is there is an abundance.

Threave House is a superbly restored Scottish baronial-style house, offering insight into the area’s history, while the Threave Sculpture Garden features more than thirty works by Scottish sculptors, including a seven tonne granite work by Ronald Rae depicting St Francis. Born in Ayr in 1946, Ronald Rae’s sculptures are displayed in a number of prominent public areas in the UK. His largest work to date is the Lion of Scotland, weighing in at 20 tonnes.

Originally developed by William Gordon in the late 1800s, Threave Estate is currently owned and managed by the National Trust for Scotland, and the Trust’s Practical School of Horticulture is based there. Visitors will find all the amenities for a pleasant family outing and will soon discover why the garden was listed as second in The Independent’s 2013 list of ‘Ten Best Gardens to Visit in the UK’.