Wicklow teaches. Following the example of Ireland’s most “flowerful” county, which for years, between May and August, hosts an internationally renowned floral festival, other regions are highlighting the history, nature, and features of their green jewels.
In the West, great prominence is given to the Ireland West Garden Trail, a virtual itinerary unfolding through the counties of Galway, Mayo, and Roscommon, painted with blooms of rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, heather, and botanical varieties that here thrive thanks to the temperate climate influenced by the Gulf Stream. Included are towering palms with an exotic look!
In the heart of Connemara, a true “veteran” in the sector is the garden of Ballynahinch Castle Hotel created two centuries ago between the river course and the Twelve Bens hills. Complementing two renowned hotels is also the “secret garden” of the Cashel House Hotel with its precious collections of ancient and modern roses, lilacs, magnolias, azaleas grown in a sort of nursery where, in 1919, Jack O’Mara introduced the most diverse and curious species from all corners of the world; and the informal garden of the Zetland Country House Hotel, overlooking the sea.
Celtic symbols and artistic installations instead characterize Brigit’s Garden (Roscahill), a representation of the cycle of life according to Celtic culture, designed by Mary Reynolds, where a non-profit organization runs educational programs for adults and children.
Literary reminiscences can be found at Coole Park (Gort), property of Lady Gregory, a playwright and co-founder of the Abbey Theatre, where the “autograph tree” stands with engravings of writers’ initials – among them Yeats, Synge, Beckett – who visited the residence every summer; the Kylemore Abbey & Victorian Walled Garden created by Mitchell Henry in 1867 and considered one of the most interesting Victorian gardens on the island.
In Portumna, on the shores of Lough Derg, among the flowering geometries of Portumna Castle, are espaliered fruit trees, lavender bushes, and aromatic herbs of a garden created in the 17th century, recently restored; while in Letterfrack, on the ocean shore, Rosleague Manor opens romantic paths through groves and flowering shrubs.
Finally, in Roscahill, the park of Ross Castle, on the shores of the eponymous lake, reveals an extraordinary variety of tall trees.
In Mayo, near Ballina, the Enniscoe House & Garden, alongside the handcrafted artifacts and agricultural tools of the Mayo North Heritage Centre, presents the original 18th-century layout subdivided in the mid-19th century into an ornamental garden and a vegetable area.
A clearly Victorian setting characterizes the green area surrounding Turlough Park in Castlebar, in a play of terraces, flower beds, and water mirrors around a very special greenhouse. The impressive green space of Westport House, in Westport, dates instead from the early 1900s; built in 1685 and considered one of the most significant historic residences on the island, it is now also a regular venue for exclusive weddings. Only two but of great value, the floral wonders of Roscommon county.
At the gates of the county town, Castlecoote House and Gardens is a Palladian mansion built on the ruins of a 16th-century castle and immersed in an ancient park among patches of flower carpets, an apple orchard, a bridge, and three medieval towers.
A true record, in Strokestown, is Strokestown Park around the eponymous 18th-century manor now used as the Famine Museum, restored and refurnished. Besides the rose garden, collections of wildflowers and ferns, its uniqueness lies in the green border that outlines it. The longest on the British Isles, included in the Guinness World Records.
