Lismore Castle Gardens

Lismore Castle stands above the Blackwater on the site of a monastery founded in 636 and a later Norman castle built by King John. Walter Raleigh owned it, sold it to Richard Boyle, first Earl of Cork, and it has been in the Cavendish family, the Dukes of Devonshire, since the eighteenth century. Robert Boyle, the chemist, was born here in 1627, and Fred Astaire's sister Adele lived here after marrying into the family. The castle itself is private and let for exclusive hire; it is not open to visitors and never has been in the ordinary sense. What is open is the garden: seven acres in two parts, the upper walled garden laid out around 1605 by Richard Boyle and cultivated continuously since, which makes it the oldest such garden in Ireland, and a lower informal garden with a yew walk where Edmund Spenser is said to have written parts of The Faerie Queene. Lismore Castle Arts runs contemporary exhibitions in the gallery and sculpture through the grounds.

What you actually see

• The 1605 walled garden - continuously cultivated for over four centuries.
• The yew walk - in the lower garden, associated with Spenser.
• The contemporary art - sculpture through the grounds and a gallery programme.
• The castle exterior - seen from the gardens and the bridge; not open inside.

When to go

April to September; the gardens close for winter. Magnolias and camellias are early, herbaceous borders later. Exhibitions change each season.

Honest expectations

The castle is entirely closed to visitors - the ticket is for the gardens and gallery only, which catches people out. Seasonal opening. The upper garden is steep in places.

Nearby

Lismore town and its cathedral are alongside; the Blackwater valley runs east.