The Gardens

The Gardens

Between the entrance gates and the distant lake lie 60 acres of surprises, delights and mysteries waiting to be discovered. There is a network of paths that lead visitors through various gardens, arboretums, and avenues, which are a constantly changing and evolving environment throughout the seasons.

Explore the Garden

Board Walk and Water Garden

Board Walk and Water Garden

The raised board walk, surrounded by Gunnera manicata and water loving plants growing in profusion. The numerous waterfalls add a coolness and calm to this…

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Carnivorous Courtyard

Carnivorous Courtyard

Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping or consuming animals, typically insects and other arthropods but in some…

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Fern Garden & Ice House

Fern Garden & Ice House

One of our visitor’s favourite gardens is The Fern Garden. The tall Dicksonias (tree ferns) growing here, brought from the other side of the world,…

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Great Trees

Great Trees

The gardens at Blarney Castle contain an exceptional collection of specimen trees, some the largest of their kind in Ireland. Many of the rare trees,…

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Herbaceous Border

Herbaceous Border

A 100-metre-long double herbaceous border, topped off with an 80m rose pergola is certainly a sight to behold. A display of floral magnificence awaits you…

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Himalayan Valley

Himalayan Valley

A glorious spring garden, full of rhododendrons, magnolias, and other Himalayan species, that captures the spirit of the wild Himalayas. A 150-year-old giant Rhododendron arboreum…

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Poison Garden

Poison Garden

This garden was created with the purpose of educating visitors about the poisonous plants that can be found both in the wild and in our…

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The Rock Close

The Rock Close

Perhaps the most extraordinary part of the garden is its oldest, the Rock Close, the first stop on the circuit on the eastern side of…

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The Seven Sisters

The Seven Sisters

The Blarney Stone is not the only stone with legends attached to it. Just northeast of the Castle can be found a circle of nine…

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Tropical Border

Tropical Border

Banana, yuccas and cordylines provide structure in a border filled with vibrant colours, including the Bird of Paradise plant (Strelitzia reginae) and other species.

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Vietnamese Woodland

Vietnamese Woodland

The Vietnamese woodland is an ex-situ conservation project that is aimed at preserving plant species from Northern Vietnam. Many of the plants growing in the…

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Ask the Expert

Ask the Expert

Adam Whitbourn, Blarney Castle’s head gardener has over 25 years experience as a professional gardener. Working in gardens of all sizes and types (as well as his own), Adam has acquired a level of knowledge and expertise second to none. He really does have green fingers!

Adam loves to share tips, answer questions and talk about all things garden related so – make him happy – post your tips or email them to [email protected] or tweet him at @Blarney_Castle

Head Gardeners Diary

All Change in September
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October

All Change in September

As we exit September and head into October, we can see the real change in the season. The nights are…

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Art and Apples
3
September

Art and Apples

August was extremely busy here in the gardens, both with visitor numbers and with work. I feel like this summer…

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Through the Artist’s Eye
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August

Through the Artist’s Eye

Aug 28th - Sept 29th Blarney Castle & Gardens are delighted to announce that we will be hosting the ‘Through…

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‘A Refreshing Review’
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August

‘A Refreshing Review’

The gardens are looking great at the moment, with colour around every corner, and so many things to discover. There…

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Getting Wild in June
4
July

Getting Wild in June

I think to say that June was a busy month here in the gardens would be a bit of an…

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May it finally be Summer?
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May

May it finally be Summer?

The gardens are looking stunning right now, and special mention goes to the Laburnum arch in the Poison Garden, and…

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April Showers Over?
7
May

April Showers Over?

Having started April with a continuation of the extremely wet weather that has plagued us throughout the year so far,…

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A Muddy March
4
April

A Muddy March

March has been a challenging month due to the constant rain. We usually have our construction and landscaping projects completed…

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February Fun
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March

February Fun

February has been an extremely busy month for us here in the gardens. There has been a sudden explosion of…

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Not Enough Days in January
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January

Not Enough Days in January

January has flown by, and I can’t believe that I’m already writing this. We are extremely busy in the grounds…

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December Daffodils and Christmas Delights
3
January

December Daffodils and Christmas Delights

December has passed in the usual festive blur, leaving me slightly befuddled but full of Christmas cheer, or is that…

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No signs of winter…yet!
5
December

No signs of winter…yet!

November has been an incredibly mild month overall, and we are still waiting for any period of prolonged frost to…

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A wet October
7
November

A wet October

I am writing this in my office whilst the rain hammers against the windows. It has become a very familiar…

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Saying goodbye to Summer
2
October

Saying goodbye to Summer

As September finishes, I can already see signs of autumn, with a drop in temperature, our first real storm of…

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A Prehistoric arrival in August
13
September

A Prehistoric arrival in August

August has been another busy month for us, and I think we are starting to see the first signs of…

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July Flies By!
2
August

July Flies By!

July has been extremely busy, and I am delighted to see so many visitors exploring the full extent of the…

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Juggling Jobs in June
5
July

Juggling Jobs in June

June has flown by in a blur of watering, weeding and generally juggling jobs as we try to keep everything…

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Lovely Laburnum
2
June

Lovely Laburnum

I think May saw the garden shake off it’s spring coat and move firmly into summer dress mode! The growth…

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A Floral Extravaganza as April Ends
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April

A Floral Extravaganza as April Ends

The gardens are looking truly fabulous right now. Every turn reveals another beautiful vista, be it drifts of tulips by…

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The March of the Cherries
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March

The March of the Cherries

The colour in the gardens is amazing at the moment, with magnolias, cherries, rhododendron and various spring bulbs all competing…

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Moving into March and Magnolias
1
March

Moving into March and Magnolias

As we move into March, we can see that spring has arrived here in the gardens. In every corner there…

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A Host of Golden Daffodils
3
February

A Host of Golden Daffodils

I think that January is often seen as a slow month, but that is certainly not so for us here…

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New Year in Blarney
5
January

New Year in Blarney

December is now behind us and as we enter 2023, I find myself looking forward to what I hope will…

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November Not So Nippy
2
December

November Not So Nippy

The Autumn colour around the gardens is magnificent right now, and well worth a trip in to see. I love…

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Autumns Glorious Colours
2
November

Autumns Glorious Colours

October saw the start of autumn and the first hints of colour through the trees in the arboretums. The reds…

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All Change for Autumn
30
September

All Change for Autumn

September simply flew by, and autumn is on its way. I can see the colours starting to change in the…

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Sculptures and Jellyfish
31
August

Sculptures and Jellyfish

August was a very busy and interesting month for us here in the gardens. We launched this year’s sculpture trail,…

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Sculptures, Roses and Honey
30
June

Sculptures, Roses and Honey

As we exit June, I find myself feeling very positive about the coming summer season. Our overseas visitors are starting…

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A Magnificent May
1
June

A Magnificent May

May brought a sudden surge in growth throughout the grounds and gardens and we are surrounded by beautiful new growth,…

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A Hectic April
29
April

A Hectic April

April has seen an absolute riot of colour in the gardens and the show is only just beginning! The colours…

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March into Spring
30
March

March into Spring

I’m going to start by saying, if you haven’t visited Blarney Castle Gardens then you are truly missing out. The…

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A Floriferous February
28
February

A Floriferous February

February has brought the promise of spring, and there are signs of it all through the gardens. Pockets of multicoloured…

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Garden Walking Trails

Garden Walking Trails
  • Woodland Walk

    The peaceful woodland walk is a quiet secluded area that leads to a circuit of the 21-acre Blarney Lake. Throughout the walk, you may hear the rustling from the red Squirrels and Jays that call the woodlands home.

  • Lake Walk

    Our 22 acre lake provides one of the most beautiful walks that is on offer on the estate! Taking about 45 mins to complete, this walk provides several opportunities to stop and admire the beauty of the lake but also the many waterfowl that call it home. On the lake be sure to look out for the resident family of swans.

  • Riverside Walk

    This walk which runs west from the entrance to the Badgers Cave, follows the river Martin to the far end of our estate. Covered in a dense canopy, this walk accompanied by the sound of flowing river offers the chance of seeing the otters and kingfishers that call our estate home.

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Buzzard 4

Conservation, Biodiversity and Wildlife

The estate boasts an impressive range of native wildlife. Blarney Castle & Gardens are the first estate in Ireland to be awarded the prestigious title of ‘Wildlife Estate’ from the European Landowners’ Organisation.

The native woodlands, rivers and lake within the inner estate and also in the separate pockets of ground around the village area, provide support for many increasingly rare species including otters, red squirrels, badgers, barn owls, buzzards, kingfishers, river lampreys, trout and salmon.

Thanks to Frank Brady for the wonderful photos!

Alison Rosse The Fernery
Lesley Fennell Two Rhododendrons and Gunnera
Philip Turner Blarney Tower
Poppy Hunt Profusion
Bernard van Giessen What if II

Through the Artist's Eye 2024

The ‘Through the Artist’s Eye’ series of exhibitions originated in 2013 when Séamus O’Brien, Head Gardener at the National Botanic Gardens, Kilmacurragh, invited six artists to generate a collection of work that could be referred to in the future, providing an artistic record of the garden at that time. The artists worked in the gardens over two years and in 2015 an exhibition was held at the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin.

From that positive beginning, the idea developed into a moving exhibition, taking place in different notable gardens on the island of Ireland. In the succeeding years, Tourin House and Gardens, Co. Waterford, Burtown House Gardens, Co. Kildare, and Birr Castle Demesne, Co. Offaly have all been seen ‘Through the Artist’s Eye’. This year, the exhibition comes to Blarney Castle Gardens, and botanical artists, fine artists, sculptors and photographers (22 artists in all) have been working in the gardens since early 2023. The resulting exhibition will be officially opened on the evening of the 27th August and will open to the public on the 28th August, running until the end of September.

The event will take place in The Stable Yard at Blarney Castle & Gardens which is point no.12 on our map.

If you have any enquiries please email [email protected]

Blarney Castle Spring-55
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Blarney Castle Spring-56

Our Horses

Blarney Castle has a very strong history with equestrian. Visitors love to see the many horses and donkeys that we have on site.

The old stables can be seen at our Coach House Café but now the stables are located on the avenue as you walk towards the lake. Historically the estate was a venue for International Horse Trials and in more recent years was a host for a Irish Draft Horse event.