Mount Usher Gardens

Close to the village of Ashford, along the banks of the River Vartry, are the very beautiful Mount Usher Gardens, with many varieties of trees, plants and shrubs, including subtropical species. The gardens, then covering little more than an acre/0.4ha, were originally laid out by Edmund Walpole in 1860; they now extend to some 20ac/8ha. The gardens, with shops, a tea room and a collection of carriages, traps and snares etc., are open to the public.