Sir Harold Hillier Gardens
Free RHS Member days
Daily, 1 January–28 February and 1 November–30 November. Please check the website for planned closures
About the garden
Run by Hampshire County Council as the sole trustee under the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens charitable trust, the gardens were established by the late plant hunter Sir Harold Hillier in 1953.
This garden is home to 611 champion trees, 14 National Collections, over 100 pines – including the ‘big cone’ pine P. coulteri, whose cones can weigh up to two kilos – and more than 12,000 taxa of wild and cultivated woody plants set in 180 acres, totalling 42,000 plants. The Winter Garden, spanning four acres, features more than 650 different plants that are at their best from November to March. Other highlights include a collection of poplar trees known as the Populetum, a maple valley, the Gurkha Memorial Garden and the Centenary Border, one of the longest mixed double perennial borders in Europe.
An RHS Mahonia trial is currently underway at Sir Harold Hillier Garden. Those cultivars that perform best will be awarded the RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM).
Facilities
- Assistance dogs only
- Parking
- Plant sales
- Refreshments
- Toilets
Key features
- Arboretum
- Pond or lake
- Autumn colour
- Champion trees
- Winter garden
Get involved
The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.