Facilities: 
Refreshments: Home-made teas if not in Gypsy House garden, teas available at Cafe Twit

Contact: Mrs Felicity Dahl

Postcode: HP16 0AL
Location: 5m NWof Amersham.  A413 to Gt Missenden. take Whitefield Lane, opp Missenden Abbey entrance, under railway bridge. Small Georgian house on R, park in field opp
click here for a map

Opening dates and times: Thurs, Weds 22 Apr; 12 May; 10 June; 14 July (2-5).

Admission: Adm £4, chd free. Combined with The Plant Specialist

Description: Home of late Roald Dahl. York stone terrace, pleached lime walk to writing hut bordered by hostas, hellebore and allium. Sunken garden with water feature, sundial garden with topiary oaks, borders planted with herbaceous perennials and assorted roses in themed colours. Small walled vegetable garden with terraced beds, espalier fruits, herbs and greenhouse with vine, peaches and nectarines. Newly replanted front garden with yews, roses and perennials. Wild flower meadow
Disability information: Limited wheelchair access, garden has steps and slopes

Further details:Gipsy House was the home of Roald Dahl. In this garden he built a hut on the edge of the orchard where he wrote his entire collection of children's stories, so not surprisingly this garden has enormous appeal to children as well as adults. It is a small garden full of surprises. You can start with the Witches Tree, the home of Fantastic Mr Fox and his family. You then walk back down the lane into the top of the garden where there is a walled terraced vegetable garden with a greenhouse containing James' giant peaches, nectarines, three varieties of desert grapes, a collection of pelargoniums and a small goldfish tank. Amongst a wide variety of vegetables are his prize Robinsons' mammoth onions. On the walls are trained fruit trees. Following on from the walled garden you enter a small children's yew and boxwood maze. The paths are carved with quotations from his books. On exiting the maze you enter the lime tree tunnel leading to his writing hut. The rest of the front garden contains a potage, herbaceous borders and a small sunken garden and paved terrace. From here you walk through into the orchard to the front of the house. There is a small wild garden in the Danny Champion of the World's caravan nestles under a tree house. You enter the front garden with two herbaceous borders, two small formal herb beds and grass path leading to the front door bordered by lavender beds and standard fairy rose trees.