12 virtual garden tours to do from home

With most of us now staying in self isolation, a day out to a springtime garden is off the cards. Thanks to a multitude of virtual tours popping up online though, you can still get a garden fix from the safety of your own home. Here are our top 12 virtual garden tours.

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Take a 360-degree tour around the old garden, plant house and spectacular red borders of the National Trust’s Hidcote Manor Gardens in Gloucestershire. The Art & Craft-inspired garden, created in 1907, is known for its intimate garden rooms as well as the Fuchsia Garden and Bathing Pool Garden. Take the tour here.

We like bringing garden people together and as you can't come to the gardens, we're bringing them to you. We have teamed up with gardens up and down the country to create virtual garden tours you can enjoy from the comfort of your own home. So far there's been Iford Manor near Bath and Chastleton House Garden too. Don't miss them as more arrive.

Even the gardens of the private residence of Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall aren’t out of bounds for a virtual tour. Sustainability is the focus for the gardens at Highgrove, with designs made to keep the garden growing in harmony with nature. The Cottage Garden, Thyme Walk, Lily Pool Garden and Sundial Garden are all available to tour online here.

Waddeson Manor was built between 1874 and 1885 by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild and soon became a buzzing hive of socialites, artists and high society. In 1959 the grand house and gardens were opened to the public for all to admire and enjoy. The garden is known for its calm beauty and its Victorian horticulture including formal gardens, trees and walks. You can now view the gardens online too, complete with a relaxing piano soundtrack, here.

Although technically just a house tour, fans of Chiswick House Gardens may like to take walk through this stunning virtual house tour, which has been made with 3D technology and is exceptionally detailed. The 18th century gardens, designed by William Kent, are the first example of The English Landscape Movement. Find out more about the revolutionary, naturalistic landscape here and take the house tour here. There is also a Garden Walk Companion Podcast for those interested in learning about the garden in more depth.

Take a tour of the top ten sights to see at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Kew Gardens, with guided commentary from Kew Garden experts along the way. The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew has thirty-seven acres of woodland, 14,000 trees and 50,000 different plant species. The picturesque Victorian glasshouses and Alpine rock garden are two other noteworthy sights. Try and spot them all here.

Explore all areas of The RHS’s Wisley garden online, including the Glasshouse, Wisteria Walk, Rock Garden and The Mixed Borders. You can also get an aerial view of the gardens, shot during the autumn period. Take a look here.

Step inside the Garden Suite at Birmingham Botanic Gardens to see a range of tropical plants, succulents and cacti. Although predominantly used for events, the Botanic Garden is situated in an idyllic spot, with plenty of plants on display. Explore the Garden Suite here.

Hot subtropical borders, herbaceous borders, a stumpery, a wild flower garden, two glasshouses with exotic fruit and vegetables, a walled flower, a babbling fountain and an organic kitchen garden are some of the things to spot at The Collector Earls Garden at Arundel Castle in West Sussex. Here head gardener Martin Duncan shows us around the beautiful sights. Take the tour here.

Hop across the channel for a virtual tour and guide of Monet’s spectacular garden at Giverny in Normandy, France. Royal Academy curator Ann Dumas and head gardener James Priest provide commentary alongside a video tour of the famous garden, including the wonderful lily pond. View the garden here.

For something further afield, why not try a virtual tour of the United States Botanic Garden, located in Washington D.C. On the tour you’ll be able to explore the Conservatory, National Garden and Bartholdi Park. You can also do an audio tour and view photos of the garden and how it has developed over the last 200 years. Take a virtual wander here.

There’s a chance to see a wide number of gardens that usually open for Scotland’s Garden Scheme through virtual tours given by garden owners such as Terrill and Gavin Dobson at their Herbalist’s Garden at Logie House, Kirriemuir. The physic garden is divided into eight rectangles that contain more than 150 medicinal herbs. The garden also features a herbaceous border and a productive garden. Donations will help to raise money for hundreds of charities supported by the scheme. Scotlandsgardens.org