On Holly Walk, the path above the Summer House, are some hollies which were planted after the removal of rhododendron plants. Ilex aquifolium Flavescens, Madame Briot, Bacciflava, Silver van Tol, Ferox Argentea, and Handsworth New Silver are planted in big groups, interspersed with Monkey Puzzle’s Araucaria araucana. These were grown from seed and Deborah Duchess planted out seventeen among the hollies and several are still thriving.
The Summer House was described by Deborah Duchess as ‘a hideous building of the Bachelor Duke’s’. He wrote: ‘here is, or ought to be, Luttrell’s seat, in the spot he fancied: the style is Saracenic; the columns are of Aberdeen granite, and the rude central capital of serpentine came with me from Palermo, and is the cause of this manner of decoration.’
The Golden Grove planting includes Malus x zumi Golden Hornet, Gleditsia triacanthos Sunburst, Acer shirasawanum Aureum, Rhododendron Haida Gold, R. Golden Wedding, Spiraea x japonica Goldflame and S. x japonica Gold Mound.
Above the Golden Grove are winter- and early spring-flowering shrubs, including Mahonia, Hamamelis, and Viburnum x bodnantense.
Discover more from the modern garden
Ravine and Azalea Dell
In the early 1930s, the 9th Duke’s wife, Evelyn, in collaboration with the head gardener, J. G. Weston, created the Ravine and the Azalea Dell in the south of the garden.
Rose Garden
Originally the French Garden, in 1939 Duchess Mary, wife of the 10th Duke, remodelled this area and it became known as the Rose Garden.
Serpentine Hedges
The Serpentine Hedges were created from an idea of Duchess Deborah's.
Display Greenhouse
This greenhouse is sited to the north of the First Duke's Greenhouse and has three climate zones: tropical, Mediterranean and temperate.
The Maze
Originally the site for Paxton's Great Conservatory, this garden is now home to a large yew maze.
Kitchen Garden
Chatsworth has grown its own food for centuries and all manner of fruit, salad, cut flowers and vegetables are grown in the kitchen gardens.
Snake Terrace
In 1974, the Snake Terrace was constructed in the space between the First Duke's Greenhouse and the Display House.
Sensory Garden
The Sensory Garden was an idea instigated by Lord Burlington, the 12th Duke's son.
Quebec
In 2008, the 12th Duke and Duchess re-established Quebec, a long-over-grown area below the Canal Pond.
Cottage Garden
The Cottage Garden was created in 1989 with topiary 'rooms' and 'furniture' created out of box, privet and yew hedges.
Arcadia
The 12th Duke and Duchess, working with the Chatsworth Garden team and three celebrated garden designers, oversaw the biggest transformation of the garden for 200 years, including a brand new landscape project: Arcadia.
Learn about the early garden
The house and garden were first constructed by Sir William Cavendish and Bess of Hardwick in 1555. The Elizabethan garden was much smaller than the modern garden is now.
Discover the 6th Duke's Garden
The 6th Duke, working with renowned gardener Joseph Paxton, made radical and pioneering changes to the Chatsworth Garden and Estate.
