THE popular annual Hatch House Open Garden event returns for 2026 on Sunday, August 30, in support of the Salisbury Hospice Charity.

Garden lovers will be welcomed to the estate from 11am until 4.30pm, able to take in the walled garden, while enjoying a host of other attractions.

The day began as a simple idea between friends – a walk through the walled garden to raise money for charity – and has since blossomed into a much-loved tradition.

From tea and cakes to stalls of second-hand treasures, the Hatch House Open Garden is a gathering that supports the community in a meaningful way.

Lady Holly Rumbold, for whom Hatch House is home, created the Open Garden alongside her friend, Elspeth Vernon.

“When our children were little, my friend and business partner Elspeth and I spent our summers at Hatch House,” she said.

“Those days were filled with pony rides, visits to Longleat, endless walks, and the bustle of cooking and laundry for six lively children.

“It was busy, it was joyful, and it became the backdrop to an idea that has since grown into something very special.

“One summer, we decided to open the gates of Hatch’s beautiful 17th-century Dutch-style walled garden to raise a little money for charity.

“At first, all we offered was a gentle walk among the flowers. The takings were modest, but the seed had been planted.

The Hatch House Open Garden event returns on August 30, 2026

“The following year, we added tea, cakes, and clothes: a mix of surplus from our own wardrobes, our London shop, and glamorous cast-offs from my mother-in-law, strung up on a ladder by our gardener, Cyril Eldridge.

“This simple gesture became a treasured tradition that raised far more than we ever imagined.”

Since those early days, the event has flourished. Now supported by Virginia Fairhurst, Joanna Jacobs, and the Tisbury Fundraising Committee, the event welcomes visitors to browse second-hand treasures that tell stories of their own.

Furniture, books, bric-a-brac, jewellery, and of course, the fabulous fashion which has become synonymous with the event.

Most importantly, as guests step into this enchanting garden, they gain the opportunity to give something back.

Every ticket sold on the gate, every purchase made, supports compassionate end-of-life and palliative care for local people – upholding the ethos at the heart of the enterprise.

To date, the Hatch House Open Garden has raised more than £250,000 for Salisbury Hospice.

The event runs from 11am to 4.30pm on Sunday, August 30 at Hatch House, Newtown, Tisbury. Entry costs £5 for adults, £2 for children.

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