Sir Harold Hillier Gardens

I took a trip with my family down to the Harold Hillier gardens in Romsey (near Southampton). The season was certainly turning quite Autumnal, yet the gardens still had plenty to offer. The gardens feature several different areas, all with the wonderful specimen trees which the Hillier name has become so famous for. Some trees looked particularly special at this time with leaves just beginning to turn to shades of yellow and orange.
Other features include an ornamental pond and several areas which have been given a more contemporary feel. There is also an ongoing sculpture exhibition throughout sections of the gardens. While this does provide added interest, and a fantastic opportunity for local design graduates to display their work, I can't say I found the installation entirely beneficial to the area. It seemed to me that the sculptures had been packed in far too tightly- certainly the feeling of 'belonging' (achieved so well with the Henry Moor exhibition at Kew) was lacking from many of the sculptures.
Certainly these gardens are well worth a visit, and are also much quieter in terms of footfall than many others such as Kew and Wisley. The gardens are owned by Hampshire County Council and managed as a charitable trust.