Great Dixter

About Great Dixter

Nathaniel and Daisy Lloyd bought Dixter in 1910, when the land around the medieval house held little more than a couple of orchards. They extended the house with Edwin Lutyens, who also shaped much of the garden's framework of curving yew hedges, York stone paving and tile details that echo the roofs.

Their son Christopher Lloyd, the gardener and writer, made it famous. He gardened here for most of his life, wrote many books and a long-running Country Life column, and filled the borders with daring plant combinations. Before his death in 2006 he set up the Great Dixter Charitable Trust, which now runs the house, garden and nursery, with Fergus Garrett as head gardener.

What to see

• The Long Border: the best known of the borders, planted in the bold, changing style the garden is known for.
• Meadows: the Front Meadow, the Orchard and the Upper and Lower Moat areas.
• Garden rooms: the Sunk Garden, Peacock Garden, Topiary Lawn, Barn Garden, Blue Garden, High Garden and Wall Garden, among others.
• The house: three buildings joined together, including a 15th century hall house and a 16th century yeoman's house moved from Kent.
• The nursery: selling plants grown on site, open all year.

Planning your visit

Great Dixter is in Northiam, about half a mile off the A28 and nine miles from Rye. Parking is free. Rye and Hastings stations have bus links to Northiam from Monday to Saturday, but Sunday buses are very limited.

Paths are a mix of gravel and dirt and can be narrow, especially in late summer when the planting spills over them. Most of the garden is step free, but some areas are hard to reach by wheelchair, and two wheelchairs can be borrowed if booked ahead. There are several unfenced ponds. The Loggia Café serves food using produce from the vegetable garden, and picnics are allowed in the car parks only.