Visit Hampton Court Kitchen Garden For Free

The historic kitchen gardens at Hampton Court Palace have been revamped according to an original plan from 1736, recreating the taste of the gardens that have fed the Royal Household for generations.

The gardens were originally built for William and Mary in 1689 on the site of Henry VIII’s jousting arena and fed kings and queens for over 160. Queen Victoria then centralised all the London palaces kitchen gardens into one operation at Windsor Castle, leading to the gardens being leased out and turned into pleasure gardens.

The kitchen garden will produce well known vegetable crops such as cucumbers, lettuce and rocket alongside 18th century favourites such as costmary, hartshorn, sweet maudlin and trick-madame, with visitors able to taste the produce in the cafe.

The Hampton Court Georgian Kitchen Garden will be open daily over the summer, with additional access to the formal gardens and the maze included as part of the free package.

 

Image courtesy of HRP.org.uk