Opening Times & Events

We are open Monday to Sunday 10am to 5pm

See the WHAT’S ON page for details about our programme of Exhibitions and Events in 2023:

Entry is free of charge (except for some advertised events) but we welcome donations – see our Support Us page. For commercial group visits, we encourage some payment.

The Duddingston Kirk Garden Room Cafe closed until Easter 2024.

No dogs allowed, except for assistance dogs

 

 


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The Garden

Azaleas

The planting is mostly conifers, heathers and alpines, with primulas , magnolias, rhododendrons, azaleas and some herbaceous borders. Erica carnea gives a splash of colour during the dull days of winter, as do Sedums and Sempervivums. The bulb season is ushered in with Winter Aconites, Snowdrops, Narcissus, Fritillaria and Alliums and other colourful low-growing species such as, Crocus chrysanthus, Muscari azurium, Chionodoxa luciliae. Apart from dwarf Rhododendrons in the rockeries and screes, there is a special eye-catching collection of Azaleas and Rhododendrons below the garden nursery.

Read the latest gardening and plantings news in the Gardeners Blog

 

The Physic Garden

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After our founders Andrew and Nancy Neil died within a few months of each other in 2005 the Garden Trust proposed that we find a way of creating a special memorial to them within the Garden. It was thought that it would be appropriate to set aside part of the Garden as a Physic Garden which would highlight the doctors’ life-long interests in horticulture and medicine.

There was an area roughly circular in shape which had so far had very little cultivation. It had to be cleared of a number of ramshackle sheds, the ground dug over and levelled. Our gardener, Claudia Pottier, drew up a daisy-shape design with eight “petals” delineated by thuya hedging, which also respected the route of the existing path through the area.

On one side of the path the planting reflects Dr Andrew’s special interest in ear, nose and throat medicine; on the other side, Dr Nancy’s interest in gyno-urinary medicine is represented. A large coloured panel displayed within a painted arbour gives brief information about the medicinal use of the plants.

The Physic Garden was formally opened in 2013, fifty years after the Neils began work on the site. When funds permit, we hope to be able to add a stone plaque with a simple commemoration to Andrew and Nancy Neil – Physicians and Gardeners.

In summary

Dr Neil’s Garden is so much more than a garden. It is a friendly place that welcomes all to its peace and beauty and at the same time offers comradeship and training to volunteers. The Garden stimulates change through play, learning, the arts, healthy activity, and by addressing disability.

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