In celebration of the Autumn Equinox and our annual Harvest weekend, we're holding what may well be South Somerset's very first BBQ & Boil!

Inspired by the flavours of the Deep South and traditional country boils, think Crab, Corn and Cyder Chowder, butcher Lloyd's hotlink sausages, green tomato pickle and cornbread made with proper West Country cheddar. Accompanied by live music for dancing and hay bales for reclining.

Join us in the gardens for two days of live acts and the finest BBQ fare and seafood this side of the county. No booking necessary, valid Membership or Member's Guest Day Pass required for entry.

From 12 June we are embarking on a First Class adventure this summer, whisking you from London Paddington to the heart of the West Country. Explore picturesque gardens and ancient woodland, discover the art of cyder making and enjoy the finest fare plucked from the soil beneath your feet. Finally, relax back into your seat and savour afternoon tea, as the miles fly by and we return you to the city.

Our dedicated team of hosts will ensure that every aspect of your day is taken care of, from breakfast through to supper. Our gardeners, chefs and cyder makers will guide you along the way, sharing their expertise with tours, talks and tastings.

The Great Garden Escape ticket includes First Class return travel from London Paddington to The Newt in Somerset; guided tours, talks and tastings; all meals from breakfast through to supper; plus 12-month Garden Membership (for a return visit under your own steam!).

The experience will operate 12 June - 26 September 2021.

Ticket price is £295pp for adults.

We welcome families, with no additional charge for children under 5 years sharing your seat. Children aged 5–15 years will be charged at a reduced rate, while those aged 16+ are charged at standard adult rate.

Group bookings and exclusive use are available, with the option to tailor your escape with seasonal workshops and bespoke experiences.

To book child, family or group tickets, please get in touch with our Reservations team who will be more than happy to help.

E: [email protected] T: +44(0)1963 577777

This month we are celebrating the mightiest yet sweetest of the cereal grains: sweetcorn.

Join us on the Estate to embark on a safari through the cornfields. Pick the cobs, learn about the different cultivars then join Head Baker, Sam Bobbett, and Estate Head Chef, Alan Stewart, as they teach you how to make and bake cornbreads and tamales - with a Somerset twist (of course!) involving cheddar cheese, apples and cyder.

The half-day workshop culminating in a delicious seasonal lunch. Entry to the Gardens and lunch are included in the price. Limited spaces available.

Cyder is the lifeblood that runs through The Newt’s veins; carrying within it the very essence of what our Estate is about: Somerset, apples, heritage, horticulture, creativity, experimentation and responsible stewardship of the land.

Join our expert cyder team throughout apple harvest season in the month of October, as they lead a hands-on cyder making workshop.

You will learn about the history of cyder making in Somerset, taste the different characteristics of some of our 70 different varieties of cyder apples, press your own juice by hand and start the cyder making process in a demi-john to then take home with you.

The day culminates with a lunch in the Garden Cafe and a tasting pack of our own cyders to take home - all included in the price.

The Signature Blend is a culmination of over three years work in the Cyder Cellar, decades of experience from our Cyder Team and a nearby 100-year-old orchard. We are very proud to dedicate this month's Live Cyder Tasting session to this exceptional cyder.

Order a tasting set then tune in live on Instagram or Facebook to join the team live from the cellar. Available for nationwide delivery.

Join Arthur Cole and a member of our expert woodland team, as you are led through the gardens and woodland to the soundtrack of the birds waking up to the day. Take in the autumn leaf colours, discover the reasons behind their seasonal transformation and find out more about the life of our beloved trees.

Get unrivalled exclusive access to the gardens, culminating in breakfast in the Garden Café.

“People aren’t too much different from roses. They both need the sunshine of encouragement, proper feeding, water, tender loving care, skilled pruning and room to grow.” Lila Peiffer, The Secrets of the Roses.

Join Head Gardener Stephen Herrington and the Ornamental Team in the formal gardens, as they lead a workshop on pruning techniques for a host of different shrubs and trees.

You will have access to the specialist knowledge of our Head Gardener and the team, trying out different tools on a wide range of plants, taking home the cuttings as well as a selection of potted Hadspen cultivars.

The workshop culminates with a seasonal lunch in the Garden Café, with a view admiring the team's pruning efforts.

Lunch and Garden entry are included in the price.

Make sure you visit this weekend during apple harvest season, for one of our favourite events in the Estate calendar.

‘Apple Day’, which actually falls on 21 October - the Thursday before the weekend - was started in 1990 by Common Ground. Apple Day aims to raise “awareness not only of the importance of orchards to our landscape and culture, but also in the provenance and traceability of food” - these are philosophies that we at The Newt also hold dear. Plus, we really like an excuse to celebrate apples.

The weekend shall be a two-day celebration of all things apple; from juice pressing to apple games, displays, recipes, cyder tastings and tractor tours through the orchards. Expect live music and DJs, apple-themed menus as well as our ever popular hog roasting on a spit over fire for the carnivores!

Our Nursery Manager, Dominic McCartney, and the Nursery Team will lead you through a variety of propagation techniques for a range of different plants at the Avalon Nursery.

Before arriving at The Newt to assume his current role, Dominic had been a supervisor in the Royal Botanic Garden Kew’s Arboretum. He brings this experience and knowledge gained at one of the world’s leading gardens to the team, and this workshop to share it with you.

You will have access to Dominic and the team’s knowledge and experience and will learn to identify plants, determine the correct propagation technique for each and correct growing media, divide herbaceous material and take cuttings.

The workshop ends with a seasonal lunch in the Garden Café. Garden entry and lunch are included in the price.

Join us in carving weird and wonderful designs into this season's pumpkins. We'll be offering tips on the best carving techniques, and at the end of the day the pumpkins will be judged and prizes awarded to the best entries.

Meanwhile, tuck into pumpkin-themed treats at different venues around the Gardens.

This activity is included in your membership, with no additional charge.

Join our resident beekeeper Paula Carnell (aka ‘Queen Bee’) or a member of her bee team, for a walking tour of our colonies of rare, native and wild bees. You will discover the various hives hidden in our woodland (just as every colony is different, so are their homes!), learn more about their fascinating behaviours, and leave feeling totally...buzzing.

Advanced booking is required, though you may be able to book on the day if space allows. Garden Membership is required for entry to the gardens.

Click Book Now or enquire with our hosts in the Threshing Barn upon arrival.

Fungi is a fascinating kingdom. There are over 15,000 species of fungi in the UK alone. Some are edible, some inedible and others can be deadly. However, the properties of fungi do not stop at the plate - this extraordinary group holds some of the answers to the beginning and evolution of life on this planet. They have medicinal uses, religious and ritualistic significance, economic weight, and folklore spanning back to times before the written word.

Join our Speciality & Wild Food Coordinator, Will McElhinney, on a forage across the Estate, identifying fungi species and foraging different mushrooms. In the second part of the workshop, Will teaches you how to sow your own oyster mushroom spores in straw to continue growing indoors at home, and how to set your own shiitake dowels in logs to continue growing outdoors at home. The third part of the workshop will be led by Estate Head Chef, Alan Stewart, who will guide you how to cook your foraged quarry over an open fire, and how to preserve it for later in the year.

Garden entry and lunch are included in the price.

Charcoal making has been part of Somerset woodland management for centuries. In this workshop, our Woodland Team guides you through how to make charcoal using a traditional ring kiln, as well as how to coppice and make biochar.

Lunch will be cooked over charcoal in the woods, and enjoyed while learning more about the sights and sounds within the trees.

We advise wearing appropriate footwear and sturdy clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty.

Garden entry and lunch are included in the price.

Christmas decorations bring cheer into the home and often remind us of Christmasses past, as we unwrap those as old familiar favourites from the box. Creating your own decorations is mindful, rewarding and means they are particular and unique to you - which makes them priceless.

Join our Floriculturist and Heritage Gardener, Maiko Ishida, for a workshop that starts with a forage through the woodlands and gardens to gather natural materials, before using them to create a host of decorations.

After working up an appetite, enjoy a warming lunch in the Garden Café from our winter menu.

Garden entry and lunch are included in the price.