Somerleyton Estate and Gardens

It's an English tradition that every great country home has been complemented by the ambition of its surrounding pleasure gardens and Somerleyton is a wonderful example of that vision. Visit the walled garden to discover the beautiful and ornate iron and glass greenhouses, designed by Joseph Paxton, the architect of Crystal Palace.

Don’t miss the 80 foot high pergola, home to wisteria, roses, clematis and vines.

Somerleyton is also home to one of the finest yew hedge mazes in Britain, planted back in 1846. The route out is around 800 yards from the centre, but most visitors find it takes rather longer to solve the maze’s mysteries!

For the less adventurous why not just stroll around Somerleyton’s pleasure gardens. Anna Outlaw, our head gardener heads an excellent team including many volunteers who are returning the garden to greatness under the guidance of George Carter, Norfolk's premier garden designer and historian.

You’ll find rhododendrons, azaleas and a fine collection of specimen trees including Eucalyptus Gunii, monkey puzzle, tulip trees, giant redwood and London Plane. Wander down the topiary-lined paths and you'll also find our little Bygones Museum with its charming collection of gardening memorabilia

The Estate

Beyond our welcome for tourists, holidaymakers and visitors, Somerleyton is a fully working estate, committed to the best practices of modern stewardship, land management and farming. We’re proud of our history, and taking care of the estate today is about preserving that legacy for future generations, from near and far.

A natural commitment

Over the past 10 years alone we have planted approximately 10,000 trees, over 8 kilometres of hedgerow as well as restored 6 ponds, a mile of the water edge habitat around Fritton Lake and created grazing meadows on former arable land as part of the government’s Countryside Stewardships Schemes. This process continues as we roll the entire estate into a higher tier of stewardship

One of the greatest successes of Somerleyton’s conservation policies has been the return of the otter as well as a huge increase in the number of local song birds including skylark. We have also seen the rise in numbers of grey partridge, barn owl, marsh harrier and lapwing.