Harrogate and Knaresborough

Key facts about RHS Garden Harlow Carr

Where

Crag Lane, Beckwithshaw, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, HG3 1QB (source)

Size

58 acres, according to the RHS (source)

Run by the RHS since

2001, when the Northern Horticultural Society amalgamated with the RHS (source)

Opening

Daily, 9.30am to 6pm (last entry 5pm) from 1 March to October, and 9.30am to 4pm (last entry 3pm) from 26 October to 28 February; closed Christmas Day, as listed by the RHS (source)

Streamside, woodland and the Winter Walk

Streamside, where the paths echo the meandering line of the beck, is the lushest part of the garden: moisture-loving planting there includes hostas, Rodgersia, Gunnera and Iris sibirica, plus ferns from the National Plant Collection of Dryopteris, and the area is home to dippers, tree creepers, weasels and voles. Woodland covers more than half of Harlow Carr's total area — much of the original derelict scrub was cleared in the 1950s and 60s and replanted with hundreds of rhododendrons that still flower here between February and August.

Near the entrance, the 315m Winter Walk was built specifically for the coldest, darkest months: plants with interesting stem colours, attractive foliage, glowing berries and scented flowers keep it interesting once the main flower displays are over, and from mid-February drifts of cyclamen and winter aconite light up the ground beneath.

Kitchen Garden and Alpine House

The Kitchen Garden, now twenty years old, was built to show what could be grown on a windy, heavy-clay site: edible crops rotate through raised beds on a three-year cycle, with flowers and herbs planted alongside the vegetables to attract pollinators and deter pests.

The Alpine House was one of the first big projects completed after the garden came under RHS care in 2001, and it now holds more than 2,000 alpine plants native to mountain regions around the world. Peak flowering time is March to May, when cushion plants such as Androsace (rock jasmine) are in bloom, and the display continues outside in stone troughs and walls packed with colourful alpine plants.

Visiting

Bettys Café Tea Rooms and Shop sits at the garden entrance, and the Harrogate Arms Café — named after the old spa hotel that once stood on this site — is near the Kitchen Garden. Opening times and admission prices change through the year, so check the RHS site for current details before you go.

Frequently asked questions about RHS Garden Harlow Carr