As winter gathers pace why not use your 2 for 1 Gardens entry card to help take off the chill with a visit to a wonderfully warming glasshouse
Winter warmer
The Palm House at Kew Gardens, in south-west London, has been described by Sir David Attenborough as ‘a living laboratory’. With spectacular rainforest plants from around the world, it also offers a tropical escape from the chills of winter. There are several other fascinating glasshouses to explore too. Take the Treetop Walkway to see autumn foliage on a new level. Winter highlights include giant redwood trees in the pinetum, tiny snowdrops in the rock garden and feathery seedheads of the grass garden, sparkling with frost.
ENTRY OFFER Gardens: 2 for 1 £17 booked, £21.50 on the gate. Prices vary. Booking recommended. Use online code gardenersworld. Open all year – for details see kew.org
A day by the Tay
Dundee University Botanic Garden, overlooking the River Tay, combines collections of native and exotic plants with an unsurprisingly educational focus. In the evolutionary garden you can learn about the development of primitive lichens and mosses into elaborate flowering plants. The native plant collection runs beside a babbling burn, with highland heather giving way to a lush lowland area. In the glasshouses you’ll find an impressive arid zone, as well as the equally ‘hot’ curry corner!
ENTRY OFFER Garden: 2 for 1 £5. Under-16s free. Open all year – details at dundee.ac.uk/botanic
Down on the farm
Just 15 minutes’ drive from Portsmouth, Staunton Farm & Gardens is a great family day out. Its collection of animals includes ponies, llamas, rabbits, ferrets and reptiles. You can even feed some of them with specific animal food from the farm shop. While the kids run riot in the play barn and hedge maze, the large Victorian glasshouse provides a warm and welcome sense of tranquillity. Its many lush tropical plants include banana trees and palms.
ENTRY OFFER Gardens & farm: 2 for 1 £10. Open all year – for full details, see hants.gov. uk/stauntonfarm
Chip off the old block
At West Dean Gardens, near Chichester, there are 13 restored Victorian glasshouses, including a pineapple pit and melon house. They’re home to many exotic plants and orchids at this time of
