More undiscovered gardens opened to public to raise funds for charities

More stunning gardens across Scotland will be open to the public raising money for charity on special open days,

Scotland’s Gardens, a charity which raises funds for other charities, added 62 new addresses and three island trails to its collection for 2015.

They include Glamis Castle in Angus, one of Scotland’s most famous castles, where the walled garden, once a kitchen garden, has recently undergone major development with new flower beds and a spectacular fountain.

The full list 530 of gardens come in all shapes and sizes and offer a variety of horticultural interests.

There are walled kitchen gardens, community growing projects, seaside plots, grand Scottish estates as well as urban and countryside gardens from the Border country right up to the Highlands and Islands.

More than 30 gardens will open for the Scottish Snowdrop Festival during February and March, while in April there are spring flower displays – the season comes slightly later in Scotland giving southern visitors a second chance to see early season blooms.

“The gardens of Scotland are incredibly diverse as the landscape and climate differs dramatically from other parts of the UK and so our programme offers a real treat for garden lovers, no matter where you live,” said Paddy Scott, chief executive of Scotland’s Gardens.

Most of the properties that open for Scotland’s Gardens, formerly known as Scotland’s Gardens Scheme, are privately owned and normally inaccessible to the public.

In the last three years more than £1million has been raised for charity by Scotland’s Gardens.

Forty per cent of funds go to charities nominated by each garden owner with the net remainder being donated to Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland, The Gardens Fund of the National Trust for Scotland and Perennial.