The 11th Garden Museum Literary Festival, gathering garden makers, designers and authors for two days of talks celebrating gardens, will take place on Friday, the 12th and Saturday, the 13th of September at the Iford Manor in Wiltshire.

Held annually, the boutique festival is Britain’s only traveling Literary Festival, with previous hosts including Sezincote House (2024) Parham House (2023), Chatsworth House (2022), Helmingham Hall (2021), and Houghton Hall (2019). Each venue provides a beautiful location to celebrate the best in garden writing and to share what inspires in gardens.

Set on the last hill of the Cotswolds, the Grade I listed garden at Iford Manor combines formality with nature and magnificent rural views across an unspoilt valley, while architectural gems and antiquities punctuate the site. The manor house (Grade II* listed) sits on the steep, south-facing slope of the Frome valley, in Westwood parish, about 2 miles southwest of Bradford-on-Avon.

The estate, now home to the Cartwright-Hignett family since 1965, has a 2.5-acre garden set on a south-facing hillside, has been lovingly restored and developed by the family, under the guidance of Head Gardener, Steve Lannin and his gardening team. In 2018, William and Marianne Cartwright-Hignett embarked on a 10 year renovation plan. They are now partway through this transformation, working closely with Lannin and their exceptional team.

Tickets will be released to Friends of the Garden Museum on Monday, the 17th of February, before the public release on Monday, the 24th of February.