PICTURE the scene: Edinburgh on a typical August day. A simmering hubbub where crowds throng the streets and posters for festival shows are plastered to almost every lamp post.
Only a stone's throw from the bustling heart of the city lies a hidden oasis of calm: Dr Neil's Garden. Situated off a narrow lane in the historic village of Duddingston, this secluded – whisper it – secret garden is an enchanting place to spend time.
It sits nestled beside the 12th-century Duddingston Kirk, where the lower slopes of Arthur's Seat meet Duddingston Loch. The charming grounds were the brainchild of the late doctors Andrew and Nancy Neil who, in 1963, set to work transforming church land, formerly grazed by cattle and geese.
I only discovered it a few years ago thanks to the Rebus author Ian Rankin. We had arranged to meet for an interview at the nearby Sheep Heid Inn, when he suggested a quick detour via Dr Neil's Garden to see a tapestry exhibition featuring work by his wife and the Meadows Tapestry Weavers.
The exhibition was held in Thomson's Tower, an octagonal building designed by William Henry Playfair and built in 1825 for the Duddingston Curling Society to store its stones.
READ MORE: Why Ailsa Craig is a heart-soaring sight for generations of Scots
While the tapestries on show that day were lovely, it was the exquisite gardens that captured my imagination. The meandering paths and lochside views feel magical. There's a pretty arched bridge over a pond and the fairy tale-esque tower looks like somewhere Rapunzel might let down her hair.
Conifers, heather, alpines, primulas, magnolias, rhododendrons and azaleas abound. There is a monkey puzzle tree – only 18 inches tall when it was gifted to the Neils in 1973; it is somewhat taller than that today – as well as species such as redwood and white fir.
The Physic Garden, with its delightful daisy-shaped design, was devised by resident gardener Claudia Pottier as a memorial to the founders, who both died in 2005.
It takes a few visits to Dr Neil's Garden to fully appreciate all its horticultural gems. Through the changing of the seasons, there is always something new to see.
READ MORE: There's gold in them thar hills: The rich history of Scotland's highest village
These beautiful images by our staff photographer Gordon Terris were taken only a handful of days ago.
The Garden of Delight, an ecological-themed promenade play aimed at children aged four to 10, takes place at Dr Neil's Garden from Friday until August 20. Visit edfringe.com for tickets. Festival By The Loch is on August 21. For more information, visit drneilsgarden.co.uk
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here