Biddulph Grange Garden, Staffordshire: lost in the maze

If you’ve ever searched for options for a day out in Staffordshire, Biddulph Grange Garden has probably come up. This National Trust garden has a lot of pretty plants and flowers, with tunnels, crevasses and towers to explore – it’s certainly unique.

Living not too far away in Cheshire, I visited a few times as a kid, when I’m told I loved exploring the maze-like garden. I also volunteered in the Geological Gallery for a summer after my first year of uni.

I recently visited again after not going for five or so years, and it reminded me of all the fun times I’ve spent there. Therefore, I’ve written this little guide to give you more information in case you’d like to visit.

Where is Biddulph Grange Garden?

You’ll find Biddulph Grange Garden in Biddulph, Staffordshire, 15 mins drive north of Stoke-on-Trent.

A short history of the garden

Like most National Trust properties, Biddulph Grange Garden has a long history. The garden and house next door were once owned by James Bateman, who collected plants from all over the world. He and his friend Edward Cooke designed the garden from the 1840s, creating nooks and crannies with all sorts of buildings and interesting features.

Once Bateman left the house in the 1860s, the garden passed into the Heath family. This sounds like a somewhat tumultuous time, as the original house burnt down and had to be replaced!

In the 1920s, the house became a hospital and the original glass houses were knocked down. It stayed that way until the hospital closed.

The National Trust bought the gardens in 1991 and have been renovating it ever since. The house is now private apartments – with an oh-so-wonderful view…

Getting to Biddulph Grange Garden

It’s easiest to get to the garden by car. Although you can get there by public transport, you’ll need to take a combination of trains and buses, so it would be easier to drive. Depending on where you’re coming from, you can head up north from Stoke-on-Trent or south from Congleton.

Biddulph Grange Garden has a reasonably sized car park with overflow which is free for all guests. You can’t take your picnic inside but there are some nice picnic areas next to the car park.

Entry fees

The garden is owned by the National Trust so entry is free for members. Being under 25, my membership costs just £42, which works out as a pretty good deal when considering the many car parks that are under National Trust ownership.

Otherwise, entrance fees are £12 per adult and £6 per child.

Personally, I think the cost of the garden is a little high compared to how long you’ll spend there. That being said, it’s definitely a fun place to visit!

Inside Biddulph Grange Garden

The thing I like most about Biddulph Grange Garden is how varied it is. It’s truly like stepping inside a maze; there are nooks and crannies to discover. Some areas of the garden can get busy, but then you turn a corner and are suddenly on your own!

I loved visiting as a kid because there was always something new to spot that I hadn’t seen the first time around. Depending on the season, the scenes can be completely different, as new flowers bloom and others die off.

Lime Avenue

The first part of the garden I visited was the Lime Avenue, a long path edged by tall trees and rhododendrons which winds along one side of the garden.

During my visit, the rhododendrons were abuzz with bees passing between the purple flowers. The grandness of the tall trees against the long pathway, although understated, took me away slightly.

China

One of the particular delights of the garden is the inspiration it takes from different parts of the world. Possibly the most striking of these is the China garden. Hidden within tall trees and accessible only by stone tunnels and small passageways, I completely missed this until right at the end on my last visit.

In the China garden you’ll find an oriental-inspired pagoda and bridge over a small lake, which nowadays seems to provide maximum photo opportunities. Another peculiar moment is the Chinese bull looking over the path.

In this area there are lots of hidden nooks and crannies which I’m sure you could easily miss; for example, the path up to a castle-style tower with views across into the neighbouring lawn and above the rhododendrons.

Egypt

Another section of the garden conjures up some of the intrigue of Ancient Egypt. Passing through stone sphinxes, there’s another stone tunnel which leads you elsewhere through the garden.

It’s quite different to what you’ll find in other gardens; however, I do have to say, I think other areas of the garden shine more brightly.

Dahlia Walk

In the more formal area of the garden you’ll find the Dahlia Walk. In spring when I last visited, this area was pretty much barren and waiting for new life. However, in the summer this area is full of tall blossoming flowers.

I have fond memories of walking through here!

Stumpery

Another unusual addition to Biddulph Grange Garden is the stumpery – an area on the edge of China which contains lots and lots of turned upward stumps, making a nice home for mosses and ferns.

Wellingtonia Avenue

On the northern border of the garden, there is one long path known as Wellingtonia Avenue.

I didn’t find Wellingtonia Avenue particularly inspiring, but I do appreciate how it takes you away from some of the liveliness of the main garden areas. At the end there’s a large urn with some benches, which makes a nice point to sit and rest at.

On the way back, take the woodland walk. It was a bit muddy when I visited, but contained fun obstacles for kids to go across and is quite different to the official garden areas.

Geological Gallery

And of course I couldn’t finish this list without talking about my favourite part of the garden: the Geological Gallery. This is where I spent every Wednesday and Thursday back in the summer of 2018, talking to people about the fossils.

The Geological Gallery is James Bateman’s ode to geology, where he set out to combine natural and biblical history in one place. You’ll find fossils and rock samples embedded into the wall alongside the days of creation.

The gallery had a lot of hammer in the days where it was a hospital and was part of a long restoration. When I was volunteering there, the restoration was still undergoing and only about half of the fossils and rocks were on the walls. Visiting again now, I was so pleased to see these works had concluded and all the fossil casts were up.

For most people the highlight will be the lepidodendron fossil, the only original fossil left in the wall. This was once part of a tree 300 million years ago.

Facilities

This is a classic National Trust property with all the same amenities you’d expect from any other. There’s a reasonably priced cafe with tables facing towards the garden, toilets and a shop with lots of plants on sale. We were quite taken by some of the bluebells on sale and could’ve ended up leaving with quite a few plants if we hadn’t pulled ourselves away…

Ratings

As part of this blog, I give every place I visit a rating so that I can easily compare them and decide whether they’re worth a visit. Those are the scores you see at the top of the page!

This is how Biddulph Grange Garden rated:

• Safety: 5/5 – the garden is so safe this is really a redundant question.
• Accessibility: 3/5 – there are some steps and uneven ground, so you’ll struggle to move around in a wheelchair. That being said that didn’t stop people with buggies from giving it ago…
• Enjoyment: 5/5 – I’m a little biassed, but I do love Biddulph Grange Garden. 
• Value: 4/5 – the entrance fee is a bit on the higher side relative to how long you’d spend there, but given it’s free for members, there isn’t too much to complain about.

Overall score: 4.25/5

If you’ve already visited, let me know if you agree with these ratings!

Is it worth a visit?

Personally I think Biddulph Grange Garden is worth a visit. There’s a lot of different areas to explore and I find it quite charming. It is a bit steep in entrance price but if you’re a member that wouldn’t be a problem.

I’d carve out two to three hours to fully explore everywhere.

Conclusion

I hold fond memories of spending time at Biddulph Grange Garden. This pretty National Trust garden makes for a hopefully quiet interlude from real life, with lots of different areas to explore and many gorgeous plants on display.

Have you visited? If so, what did you think? Let me know in the comments.