Beyond the garden walls, meander through the secluded and ever-changing woodland. Notice the tall, swaying beech and oak trees and feel transported away from the city environment. Every season brings its own character and reward.
Our shelter woodland, a living testament to our history, was originally planted with beech soon after the house was built. Many of these trees, standing tall and proud, still grace our woodland today. Between 1950 and 1965, a variety of pines, larches, oaks, limes and sweet chestnuts were added, enriching the diversity of our woodland. Ground cover and other plants, carefully chosen to thrive in woodland habitats, including Meconopsis, primulas, foxgloves and the delightful spring bulbs, all contribute to the vibrant tapestry of our woodland.
The woodland has a designed path suitable for wheelchairs and buggies.
Greenbank Woodland Walk
An easy stroll through the woodland that surrounds the walled garden at Greenbank.
*There is also an outer loop that goes through the woodland at Greenbank, which takes a little longer and crosses the burn that runs parallel to the end of the garden. This path is over the woodland floor and has some tree roots – it is not suitable for wheelchairs or buggies.
It runs in a clockwise loop, and younger visitors may enjoy spotting some of the wooden sculptures along the way!
Walk details
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Difficulty
Easy – type 1 gravel path suitable for wheelchairs and buggies
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Time
15 minutes
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Distance
⅓ mile (0.6km)
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Ascent
18ft (6m)
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Start
Greenbank car park
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Finish
Courtyard café
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Step 1
(1/6)From the car park, head up the slight slope to the information board at the corner of the courtyard buildings.
There is also a donation box here if you would like to contribute to our work to keep Greenbank beautiful!
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Step 2
(2/6)Turn left onto the woodland walk and follow the path that runs beside the garden wall on your right.
As you head along, you can enjoy glimpses of the walled garden on the other side through occasional gates. Rhododendrons grow along the edge of the mixed woodland on your left, which is often filled with birdsong.
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Step 3
(3/6)At the corner of the garden wall, turn right to continue following the path parallel to the wall at the bottom of the garden. A tall Scots pine is ahead of you.
[Small detour: At this corner, a woodchip path leads for about 20m to a bench cut into a fallen tree – a great spot for little ones to practise their balancing beam skills!]
Mock orange fills the beds with scent on your right in early summer.
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Step 4
(4/6)At the next corner, turn right again to continue on your clockwise loop, ignoring the paths that lead to the left over a bridge or straight ahead into the woodland.
On this corner, you may notice a carved bird of prey watching over you on the left.
Pass two old stone gate posts with intricate carvings on your left and, a little further on, the old stone chimney in the garden wall, which used to heat the wall to help the fruits growing inside.
Huge beech trees create a lovely canopy on this side of the garden.
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Step 5
(5/6)At the end of the garden wall, continue straight ahead until you reach the estate road and then turn right again to pass Greenbank House (not open to the public).
This is the perfect place to admire the Georgian symmetry of the house – and see if you can spot the sneaky way the architect avoided paying glass tax!
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Step 6
(6/6)You will soon arrive at the lovely courtyard café, where you can enjoy a hot drink and snack either inside or in the courtyard – or perhaps buy a picnic box and find a bench with a view of the garden.
It’s just 70m from here back to the car park.
