Kildrummy Castle Gardens

Alford, United Kingdom Established: 1904

Photo: Peter Moore / CC BY-SA 2.0, modified.

Overview

Kildrummy Castle Gardens are historic water and quarry gardens below Kildrummy Castle in Aberdeenshire. The site was developed in the early twentieth century after Colonel James Ogston bought the estate in 1898. The garden is notable for its dramatic ravine setting, pools, cascades, rockwork, bridge, quarry planting and internationally sourced trees and shrubs. Historic Environment Scotland includes Kildrummy Castle in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes, noting its nationally significant garden features.

History

Colonel James Ogston bought Kildrummy Estate in 1898 and had the new house built around 1900. In 1904, the Back Den burn was dammed and turned into a sequence of large pools linked by cascades. Historic Environment Scotland states that the rockwork was constructed by a Japanese firm of landscape architects, while the old quarry was transformed by the Yorkshire firm Backhouse, under the direction of David Peary.

After later changes of ownership, the gardens were managed for many years by the Kildrummy Castle Gardens Trust. They closed during the pandemic, and permanent closure was announced in July 2021 after a change of ownership. A 2025 account states that the gardens remain closed and are now for private use, though future charity open days have been mentioned as a possibility.

Design features

The garden is centred on the Back Den ravine, where the burn was transformed into pools, cascades and water features. Its design includes extensive artificial rockwork, zig-zagging paths down the escarpment, bog planting along the water’s edge, quarry planting, alpine and acid-loving plants, and a large single-arched bridge modelled on the Brig o’ Balgownie. Notable planting includes rhododendrons, primulas, gentians, Meconopsis, Japanese umbrella pine, Cryptomeria japonica and other specimen trees.