The gardens at Woodstock, gloriously situated above the River Nore, were conceived on a grand scale by Colonel William Tighe (d. 1878) and Lady Louisa Lennox (d. 1900) as the centrepiece of a great estate. The estate fell into decline following the destruction of Woodstock House in 1922 and buildings were taken down, paths became overgrown, and statuary was lost. The gradual restoration of the gardens began in 1996 under the Great Gardens of Ireland Restoration Programme and today visitors can walk along gravel paths; stop by a charming grotto with its decorative pebble work floor; witness the changing of the seasons in an eighteenth-century walled garden; take tea in a restructured curvilinear glasshouse; explore a cone-topped dovecote; and promenade through the longest and oldest Monkey Puzzle Walk in Europe.
Click here to visit the Woodstock Gardens and Arboretum website