Spring has blossomed a little earlier than expected at Doddington, so we have made the decision to bring the start of our Cherry Blossom Week forward and lengthen it to a fortnight.
The Cherry Blossom event will now be open from Sunday 9 April to Sunday 23 April daily (excluding Thursday 13 and Saturday 22). Our visitors are invited to enjoy beautiful displays of impossibly pretty blossom as well as additional colour from rhododendrons, magnolias and bluebells. The 1pm tours with head gardener David Logan will stay in place for the second (original) week but will not be available in the first (additional) week.
We do hope this has not inconvenienced you! We have to plan our events up to a year in advance but unfortunately we can’t control the seasons; the mild winter has meant that some of the blossom is starting to come out early. Our priority is to make sure that none of our visitors are disappointed. By opening for an extra week in front of the original week, we can make sure the earlier blossoms are not missed. With other plants in the gardens also looking beautiful, April is a very pretty month to visit our gardens.
The star of our blossoms are the trees on the Cherry Walk. Approximately 80m long with nine cherry trees including Prunus Yedoensis, Taoyama Sakura and Prunus Sargentii, it was planted 57 years ago. Recent additional plantings in the last few years include Tai Haku – Great White Cherry and Prunus Serrula with its shiny, mahogany bark.
Our orchard has wonderful apple blossom too; there are three very large Bramley trees and a variety of other apples, quince, medlars and pears. We are also very proud of our stunning crab apple trees Siberian Crab, Golden Hornet Crab and John Downie Crab. Other colour is provided by our rhododendrons (Rh. Nobleanum) which actually start in December and continue until May.
It’s worth noting that our Magnolia will also look good during the fortnight, in particular the large M Soulanglana in the West Garden, which is stunning. Our nature trail is also included in garden admission and will take you through restored parkland and ancient woodland revealing many wild crab apple trees and wild cherries alongside wonderful bluebells.
As this year’s Cherry Blossom Fortnight will coincide with Easter, it’s a chance to enjoy additional features such as the House opening on Easter Sunday and Monday, Lincolnshire Artists’ Society spring exhibition, an Easter Eggsploration for families plus our two-day Easter Craft Fair.
Doddington Hall’s Cherry Blossom fortnight will take place daily from Sunday 9 April – Sunday 23 April (excluding Thursday 13 and Saturday 22). Admission to the Gardens: adult £7, child £3.50, family £18. Open 11am to 4.30pm (last admission 4pm).
