Tucked between Castle Cary and Bruton in the heart of Somerset’s softly rolling landscape sits The Newt. This working country estate celebrates both history and horticulture, while honouring the landscape.
The Newt offers visitors a range of experiences. Guests staying at the Grade II-listed hotel enjoy bucolic views, food lovers feast, thanks to the estate’s farm-to-fork policy, while spa guests luxuriate at the onsite facilities.
The jewel in The Newt’s crown, however, is its spectacular gardens. Visitors can explore ancient woodland, an orchard, a produce garden, a working farm, landscaped areas and historical sites. While all corners of the estate embody The Newt’s core principles of sustainability and seasonality, a particular highlight is the Four Seasons Garden, which has been zoned to celebrate the cyclical rhythms of the year.
Hotel guests, food lovers, families and garden enthusiasts head to The Newt estate throughout the year, drawn by the promise of varying seasonal delights.
Let’s take a tour of the estate to see what gems await as it moves through spring to winter.
The Parabola
We begin our tour in the 18th century Parabola. This D-shaped walled garden was reimagined by landscape architect Patrice Taravella in 2014. Inspired by French growing techniques, the trees are trained in espalier formations, flat against the brick walls. There are 689 trees with National Collection status. Beyond the Parabola, apple orchards are harvested to make Newt Cyder.
Seasonal highlights
- Spring: apple blossom season arrives with a covering of pink and white blooms
- Summer: young apples emerge and the orchard is busy with birds and insects
- Autumn: the Parabola is awash with colour as harvesting season begins
- Winter: with the foliage and fruit gone the structural beauty of the orchard comes into view
Ancient woodland
To walk through these woods is a stroll through history, as well as nature, with mature trees, such as hornbeam and veteran oak, including a 300-year-old Druid Tree. Wander above the treetops on the elevated walkway, The Viper.
Seasonal highlights
- Spring: the woods come alive with bright foliage, bluebells and wild garlic
- Summer: shades of green provide cover overhead while walkways are dotted with wildflowers
- Autumn: veteran oaks display rich red hues as hornbeam leaves turn gold
- Winter: the magic of the season is displayed in stark glory and silvery bark
The Kitchen Garden
Stop for a bite to eat at The Newt’s Garden Café and you’ll be blessed with inspiring views of The Kitchen Garden, the heart of The Newt’s farm-to-fork policy. The Kitchen Garden is a sensory delight, stimulating sight, taste and smell. Chefs access the herbs and flowers that grow in the garden daily to keep the menu attuned to the seasons.
Seasonal highlights
- Spring: the transition from winter brassicas into first leaves, lettuces and herbs
- Summer: the garden offers a bounty of peas, beans, tomatoes and tender stem broccoli
- Autumn: chefs harvest step-over apples, squashes, beets and shark fin melons
- Winter: the garden quietens and beds are rested in preparation for spring
Four Seasons Garden
Our final destination is an immersive garden that has been optimised to provide colour, fragrance and fleeting splendour throughout the seasonal cycle. “The Four Seasons garden is a journey through the seasons that surprises you at every turn,” says Head Gardener, Harry Baldwin. “It took nearly two years to complete and it’s one of a kind. There is no other garden like it and it's exciting that our members and guests can experience the amazing scent of the roses, the structure and awe of the topiary garden and the long winding path through warmth and calm in the autumn garden.”
Seasonal highlights
- Spring: the season of hope sees Japanese cherry blossom trees burst into colour
- Summer: climbing roses, wisteria and magnolia provide a heady sensory display
- Autumn: meander through a variety of trees displaying wild and vivid colour
- Winter: evergreen arches and topiary walkways provide a magical backdrop
Beyond The Newt
An annual membership with The Newt offers visitors unlimited opportunities to explore all areas of the garden throughout the year. Membership also provides access to 17 global partner gardens, including the Eden Project, Tresco and Blenheim, so you can enjoy more gardens in every season.
To discover more about membership options click here.
The Newt at the Chelsea Flower Show
In 2024, the team at The Newt presented a Roman Garden, inspired by The Newt’s Villa Ventorum. This year, they have collaborated with The Newt’s sister estate Babylonstoren. The master botanists at the South African estate are experts in the native flora of the drylands. “I’m looking forward to seeing the Karoo Succulent Garden come to fruition at RHS Chelsea,” says Harry Baldwin. “It takes an extraordinary amount of time and work from the team, so it will be wonderful to bring it back to The Newt, where it can continue to thrive and grow.”