Kilgraney House and Herb Gardens

Unique Herbal Experiences Await

In addition to the large kitchen garden, you can explore a series of herb-inspired spaces. First, there’s a medicinal herb garden, set in a granite courtyard and consisting of nine raised beds in Irish oak timber. Each bed is planted with herbs suitable for treating a particular part of the body. Next, you’ll discover a modern interpretation of a medieval monastic herb garden, with four oak raised beds filled with plants grown for: medicine; flavouring beers, wines and spirits; ceremonial purposes; and for strewing. The beds are surrounded on two sides by an oak timber cloister covered in grape vines and hop plants.

Close by there’s a cosmic herb garden to help explain and facilitate our understanding of the ancient belief that there is a connection between people, plants, planets and constellations. In an adjoining courtyard there’s an olfactory overload awaiting in the fragrant sanctuary, an aromatic garden planted with herbs, jasmine and roses for fragrance and also for their usefulness in cosmetic preparations.

Further along there’s a hornbeam lined walk with four garden rooms: one with cutting flowers; one with soft fruits, one with meddlers and another with quince trees. There’s a tall yew hedge at the end of the croquet lawn and behind it you’ll discover a heritage Irish apple orchard, maintaining biodiversity with some unique Irish cultivars.

Further along, there’s a native tree walk based on Bretha Comaithchesa, an 8th century Irish law where trees were classified into four hierarchical categories with a series of laws governing their use. Finally, there’s a Celtic Torc garden, an Irish interpretation of a Japanese Zen garden.