Hever Castle and Gardens, Kent
Hever Castle and Gardens in Kent glows with a glorious display of an estimated 250,000 trumpets from approximately 90,000 daffodil bulbs. Among them, cultivars from the 17th century continue to thrive, including Narcissus ‘Telamonius Plenus’ as well as heritage These are fleshy, rounded, underground storage organs, usually sold and planted while dormant. Examples include daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, lilies, onions and garlic. The term is often used to cover other underground storage organs, including corms, tubers and rhizomes.
Head Gardener Neil Miller and daffodil breeder Johnny Walkers lead tours of the collection, described as a ‘living museum.’ “Hever Castle and Gardens seems to be a particularly good place for daffodils. The soil is spot on and the way the gardens are well-looked after provides the right balance of water and light for daffodils,” said Johnny.
Many of the daffodils were planted in the early 1900s at the request of former owner and daffodil enthusiast William Waldorf Astor. “Anne Boleyn’s Orchard is filled with both ancient and modern cultivars, all of which look as fantastic as the day they were planted,” said Neil.
The event draws an ever-increasing number of visitors each year, keen to see different varieties of daffodil and learn more from Neil and John. A new introduction to Hever Castle in 2025 is N. ‘Kedron’, a multi-headed variety with fragrant flowers that bloom towards the end of April on 35cm-tall stems. The addition of later-flowering daffodils at Hever also means that the season has been extended significantly, from the end of February to late April.
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Free access for RHS members in 2025: Monday–Friday, 12 February–14 November 2025
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Dazzling Daffodils will take place from 17–23 March 2025
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Find out more at Hever Castle and Gardens
If you live in Scotland, or are planning a trip in this gorgeous country in mid-April, you can’t miss Scotland’s Daffodil Festival 2025, which takes place at Backhouse Rossie Estate. This RHS Partner Garden is home to the National Plant Collection of Backhouse Rossie family Narcissus cultivars, which can be viewed within the traditionally managed walled garden and grounds.
In the Walled Garden, visitors can see the longest rose archway in Scotland, underplanted with heritage Narcissus varieties such as N. ‘Little Witch’ (1921), N. ‘W. P. Milner’ (1869), Tulipa ‘Spring Green’, Auricula and primula plantings. In the potager quarter are N. ‘Emperor’, N. ‘Empress’, N. ‘Mrs R. O. Backhouse’ – named by Robert Backhouse in honour of his wife Sarah, who bred it – and N. ‘Desert Fox’, created by Robert and Sarah’s son, William O. Backhouse. Narcissus ‘Mrs R. O. Backhouse’, in particular, holds a special place in horticultural history as the first true pink daffodil ever bred.
Heritage Narcissus plantings also surround the grass labyrinth quarter, while in the orchard quarter, a profusion of Narcissus adds colour to an area planted with old espaliered apple trees. In the grounds, swathes of daffodils grow across the lawns, including N. ‘Golden Harvest’ (1920) and N. ‘Jack Snipe’ (1951). A woodland, daffodil-lined walk to a ruined Covenanter’s tomb and children’s bear walk with scented daffodils complete the collection.
Scotland’s Daffodil Festival 2025 will run from Saturday 12–Sunday 13 April 2025, between 10am–4.30pm. Visitors will experience the beauty of some of the first daffodil cultivars ever created in the UK.
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Free access for RHS members in 2025: Thursday and Friday, 2 April–29 September 2025
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Scotland’s Daffodil Festival 2025 will take place from Saturday 12–Sunday 13 April 2025
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Find out more at Backhouse Rossie Estate
The Springfields Festival Gardens holds a collection of 600 varieties of Narcissus across approximately 15 acres of gardens. Of these, 410 are modern and historic daffodils registered in the National Collection. From Saturday 12–Sunday 13 April 2025, the gardens will host the Springfields Horticultural Society’s Annual Daffodil Show, where the beauty of daffodils will be celebrated with stunning displays and exhibits staged by dedicated horticulturists from across the country. The show features a diverse range of competition categories and will take place in a marquee on the main lawn.
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Free access for RHS members in 2025: daily, 1 January–6 November 2025 and 21–31 December 2025 (25 December excluded)
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Springfield Daffodil Show will take place from Saturday 12–Sunday 13 April 2025
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Find out more at Springfields Festival Gardens
More than 300,000 spring bulbs have Naturalised plants are those that have been introduced to a place outside of their native range and have become established in the wild there, surviving, reproducing and spreading without help. Sycamores, snowdrops and sweet chestnuts are naturalised plants in the UK.
Spring is a time of new beginnings, and around the garden, A bud is a small, undeveloped shoot that contains the potential for new growth. Buds are typically found on stems, where they can be apical (found at the tip) or axillary (found between leaf axils) and may develop into leaves, shoots or flowers.
Exbury Gardens is a 200-acre woodland garden famed for its spring-flowering magnolias, camellias and rhododendrons. Visitors can wander around the River of Gold, a 100,000-bulb colour burst that weaves around rare trees near Exbury House, and a new River Walk, which provides access to previously hidden woodland within the Gardens, offering glimpses of the Beaulieu River estuary. Stretching nearly half a mile past mature oaks, field maples, yews and hazels, the River Walk meanders from Daffodil Meadow, which is planted with thousands of the yellow spring favourites, to the stunning flower-filled Azalea Bowl.
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Free access for RHS members in 2025: daily, 8 March–31 March 2025, 1 June–30 June 2025, 1 September–30 September 2025
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Find out more at Exbury Gardens & Steam Railway
Swathes of beautiful daffodils appear over the banks of the valley in Hestercombe’s 18th-century landscaped garden, designed by former estate owner Coplestone Warre Bampfylde in the 1750s. The garden has fascinating follies and stunning vistas, ponds and waterfalls. Most of the trees and shrubs are A native plant is one that originated or arrived naturally in a particular place without human involvement. In the British Isles, native plants are those that were here during the last ice age or have arrived unaided since.
The Edwardian formal garden at Hestercombe was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and Gertrude Jekyll and is considered one of their most outstanding collaborations. The Victorian terrace is full of colourful seasonal bedding and offers fantastic views over the Jekyll/Lutyens Great Plat.
The Victorian shrubbery offers plenty of spring interest, such as Sarcococca, winter-flowering honeysuckle, witch hazel and hellebores.
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Free access for RHS members in 2025: daily, 1 October–31 March 2025
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Find out more at Hestercombe Gardens
Please check the gardens’ website before you visit, as times and access may change.