Exbury Gardens facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Exbury Gardens |
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Herbaceous borders near the house
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| Location | New Forest |
| Created | 1919 |
| Operated by | Exbury Gardens Limited |
| Designation | Grade II |
Exbury Gardens is a truly amazing garden located in Hampshire, England. It is owned by a branch of the famous Rothschild family. You can find it in the quiet village of Exbury, right next to Beaulieu and across the river from Bucklers Hard.
The gardens are easy to find, with clear signs from Beaulieu and the A326 road that connects Southampton to Fawley in the New Forest. Exbury Gardens is considered very important. It is rated Grade II* on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. This means it's a place of special historic interest.
Contents
A Garden's Beginning: Exbury's Story
The story of Exbury Gardens began in 1919. That's when Lionel Nathan de Rothschild bought the Exbury estate. He quickly started to build a garden that was incredibly ambitious.
To make his dream garden, he built a water tower and three large ponds. He also installed about 35 kilometers (22 miles) of underground pipes! Today, Exbury Gardens is open to the public for most of the year. It's especially popular in spring when many flowers bloom. It's also beautiful in autumn when the leaves change color.
The main building, Exbury House, is a grand house built in the 1920s. It has a classic style, but it is not open for visitors to explore inside.
Exploring the Wonderful Gardens
Exbury is a huge woodland garden, covering about 80 hectares (200 acres). It's famous for its enormous collections of rhododendrons, azaleas, and camellias. Many people think it's the best garden of its kind in the United Kingdom!
Exbury also holds special national collections. These include Nyssa (also known as Tupelo) and Oxydendrum trees. These collections are part of a program by the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens. This program helps protect important plant types.
Other exciting parts of the gardens include:
- The Hydrangea Walk, full of colorful hydrangea flowers.
- The Rock Garden, with plants growing among rocks.
- The Iris Garden, showcasing beautiful iris flowers.
- The Sundial Garden, where you can find a sundial.
- The Centenary Garden, a special area celebrating the garden's history.
- The Camellia Walk, which leads you to a path along the Beaulieu River. From there, you can walk back past the pond.
How Exbury Gardens is Run
Exbury Gardens is managed by a special group called Exbury Gardens Limited. This group is a registered charity. Their main goal is to keep Exbury Gardens beautiful and open for everyone to enjoy. They also work to help people learn more about gardening and plants.
Getting to the Gardens
During the summer months, you can reach the gardens using the New Forest Tour bus service. This is an open-top bus, which makes the journey even more fun!
The Exbury Steam Railway
In one part of the gardens, you'll find the exciting Exbury Steam Railway! This railway has a special narrow track, just 31 centimeters (12.25 inches) wide. It takes you on a fun journey through a tunnel and around Dragonfly Pond. You'll also travel through the Summer Lane Garden, along the top of the rock gardens, and into the American Garden.
The railway was built between 2000 and 2001. It was added to make the gardens even more attractive to visitors. Two special steam engines were built for the line by the Exmoor Steam Railway. These engines are designed to look like classic narrow-gauge trains. The Exbury Steam Railway is also a member of Britains Great Little Railways, a group of small, fun railways.
The railway quickly became very popular. So popular, in fact, that trains often needed two engines to pull all the carriages! To help with this, a much larger steam engine was built. This engine, named Marriloo, started service in 2008. It's famous for once carrying the Queen on a special ride! The railway also hosts popular "Ghost Trains" around Halloween and "Santa Steam Specials" during Christmas.
See also
In Spanish: Exbury Gardens para niños
