foxglove spires open garden

tommiej

After being quite enchanted on a visit here some years ago I took a friend there in January. There was extensive work in progress, the paths were muddy, the gardens overgrown and unkempt with weeds. The lovely gift shop and café still displayed on the website are now closed and vacant. It took ten minutes to walk through compared with the couple of hours we had spent previously. When I complained to the owner that I thought a charge of $9 per adult was excessive considering the condition of the garden I received a very snappy reply that it was only the cost of two cups of coffee and that 99% of people loved it!

SueH130

It has been a while ago now since I have visited Foxglove Spires, and by the look of more recent reviews nothing much has changed. We were disappointed in the gardens, they looked like they needed a lot of attention to get them back up to scratch. I won't return until I see a few good reviews here that indicate some serious work has been done to it.

DaisyDinkum

Having paid 40 dollars to visit these gardens we were bitterly disappointed. Apparently once beautiful gardens they are now little more than a collection of weeds and overgrown plants. It was very sad to witness the neglect and we are not sure what the entry fee is going towards other than lining the owners pockets. Enjoy the small and independently owned nursery next door but do not waste your money visiting these gardens. The new owners need to invest considerable time and money salvaging what they can of their privately owned garden before they can begin to justify charging an entry fee - this is hardly a worthy charity!

needanotherholiday24

After reading the book decided to have a look. The only business left here apart from the garden visit is the nursery. Having travelled from the Hunter Valley the gardens were a disappointment, what was obviously a beautiful and much loved garden in past times is now decaying and weed ridden. The new owner passed us as we entered and even though we were the only visitors to the complex we were totally ignored. Whatever happened to welcome to my garden, I hope you enjoy it. We spent half an hour for $9 each and tried to place all the beautiful pieces from the book into place but actually failed to find half of them. There is obviously construction work in place however whether it will be a good result or a waste of time is yet to be seen. For a $9 entry fee this was not good value for money.

124pams

What a gorgeous place to frolic in the beautiful gardens. Perfect for weddings, or just a chillaxing morning or afternoon amongst the flora. Top it all off with a nice lunch or morning tea at the café. Truly an inspiring spot.

Laney78

I know there would be quite a lot of money going into maitinence of these gardens, however $9 to look around is a bit steep! My friend had her baby shower here and I had to work in the afternoon. I did not even get to look around for my money's worth before scooting off to work. What I did see was quite nice though.

Helenabelle

what looked like a lovely "Hidden Garden" when peeping through the barrier from the nursery we decided to pay the $9 per person to have a look around. The evidence of what was once a lovely garden was only just there. Basically the garden is a bit of a construction site and very disappointing apart from the over charge for viewing. we could see that the owners are trying to resurrect the once grand garden but maybe they should do a section at a time. Apparently they advertise rooms for rent and "garden " weddings. Maybe in the future this would be very pleasant, if all the working equipment was moved away from the house area. i suppose I wouldn't be so harsh if I didn't feel that it is probably just a money grabbing exercise at the moment. Charges for an Open Garden is usually about $7 and then one views a completed garden not a half finished one. apart from that I' hope that this garden will once again be a beautiful one. Please don't charge until it is.

Gaudibear21

We arrived mid morning, my mother had been before and told us how wonderful it was ,several years ago, whilst in the nursery area wandering around the owner, glared and rolled his eyes as people wandered around apparently not where he wanted them to walk!!, definitely not a warm welcome, the price of the gardens was too expensive for 8 of us at $9.00 each, we were looking forward to having a coffee but the coffee shop and gift shop have closed down :-(, such a shame.We looked around the nursery then went on our way.

EmJayLondon

Waste of money. Staff were short. Garden's a mess, and whilst the flowers were going over the overall tidiness left a lot to be desired. A real shame because it could be SO amazing...

World_Cup_Wanderer

We have been visiting foxglove spires for over 10 years, and popped in recently after a two year gap. What a tragedy of decline. The once beautiful gardens are now poorly kept, and the wonderful atmosphere of passionate gardening has disappeared. We left after a short walk-through wondering how such a great garden could be let go as it has been.New owners also seem very abrupt and unwelcoming. I do not feel inspired to pop in again after a long history of visiting this once magnificent garden. A tragedy.

gardenjman

tried foxglove spires a second time after a awful experience in 2012. Arrived at 10 and it was shut......waited 5 minutes and the owners showed up and were actually indignant about our waiting! Very sad to see a great garden ruined by new owners

doodlesMelbourne

We arrived at the Spires nursery and browsed and then went to entrance and saw it was 9 dollars per person for entry. It was too expensive for a wander around a garden, however pretty. We left without seeing the garden because 45 dollars for 5 of us, there was no concession for families, was just too much.

NigelA523

The Foxglove Spires Open Garden is a beautiful place to spend some time. A big open garden with shops and cafe, Plenty of room for the kids to wander and play and lovely flowers and gardens. Definitely worth a visit if you are visiting the area.

WJReserves

We recently took the kids to Foxglove. They loved it of course, running up and down the paths and finding secret nooks and crannies. The garden itself is looking very overgrown and in need of some TLC. Hopefully it will be revived to its former glory by Spring.

pandd1946

A nice spot to stop off in Tilba to view this private garden with a coffee shop and gift shop on site. A stroll through the garden would take about an hour and has many nooks and crannies with lovely gardens meticulously tended by the owners.