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From the Japanese Bridge to the little Noah’s Ark figures in the nursery, there are dozens of treasures to discover in our house and garden.
During University of Birmingham’s anniversary year, we’re celebrating 125 ‘Wonders of Winterbourne’ – all the very best of what you can see and do in our house and garden.
Every month we’ll update this list – so you’ll find reasons to return time and time again to discover new delights.
We want to hear about your own ‘wonders’ – the artefacts, plants or experiences that stay in mind after your visit to Winterbourne. Look out for Wonder of Winterbourne feedback postcards in reception or simply let us know via the form below.
Submit your own ‘wonder of Winterbourne’
How many ‘wonders’ will you tick off in 2025?
1. May is a busy month for bees, with the warmer and sunnier weather bringing into bloom lots of pollinating flowers. They particularly adore the pink flowers of the Persicaria bistorta ‘Superba’ that will be blossoming in the garden this month.
1. Have you visited our newly-refurbished Gift Shop yet? Every penny you spend supports Winterbourne.
2. The warm weather we’ve had over the past month has brought the wisteria into bloom slightly earlier than usual. The terrace and the pergola are both awash with their fragrant violet-blue flowers.
3. The Giant Gunnera are also just bursting back to life along the woodland walk, with their huge leaves able to grow up to a whopping 4 metres in width. Now banned from sale in the UK due to their invasive nature, our Giant Gunnera were planted by John Nicolson in the 1930s.
4. May is one of the busiest months of year for our team of expert gardeners and garden volunteers. The warmer weather means that plants need more attention, and there’s also lots of new plants that we’ve been growing in our glasshouses during the colder months now ready to go out into the garden for summer. You’ll no doubt see our gardeners and volunteers hard at work on your next visit. Make sure to say hello!
5. Late spring is the perfect time of year to enjoy a picnic on the lawn! Bring a basket full of goodies, lay out your blanket, and enjoy a peaceful lunchtime in the sun.
6. Make sure to venture through the house on your next and admire the fruit, honeysuckle and woodland creatures carved in plaster on the stairwell.
7. Did you know that Winterbourne offers a variety of horticulture qualifications at the Winterbourne Centre for Horticulture? Applications have just opened for our 2025-26 RHS-accredited horticulture courses, as well as our NCFE-accredited Winterbourne Certificate in Garden Design. You’ll be taught by industry-leading experts, receive dedicated support from our learning officer and team of gardeners, and have access to Winterbourne House and Garden throughout the year giving you endless inspiration for your studies.
8. The steps that lead from the terrace down to the top lawn, giving a wonderful view of the Lime-walk, were inspired by the architecture of Edwin Lutyens, who designed many English country houses and was regarded as the greatest architect of the late 19th and early 20th century.
9. The Walled Garden was designed with a perfect balance of beauty and practicality… The waved pattern of the ‘crinkle-crankle’ wall on the eastern boundary traps heat, helping fruit trees to grow and mature.
10. Geographical Beds Explore the flora of five different regions of the world – Asia, Australasia, North and South America, and Europe, brought to Winterbourne by John Nicolson. These beds were installed in 1959 by the University of Birmingham’s botany department, then based here.
11. Stream Lawn is wet underfoot because of underground springs and has undergone a lot of work to make it more accessible. It’s now undergoing a rewilding project, as we remove invasive plants, and plant a host of wetlands native species that will thrive. You can also take a seat alongside the lawn to admire the awe-inspiring dawn redwoods (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) – one of Head Gardener Dan’s favourite species.
12. Nicolson’s stone Stop to admire Nicolson’s impact on Winterbourne. As well as adding the much-loved Japanese House and iconic Japanese Bridge, Nicolson particularly loved the Sandstone Rock Garden. His ashes were scattered in the smaller rock garden made of the Westmorland stone, now marked with an engraved memorial stone.
13. Views of Old Joe As you wander through the Garden and look towards Winterbourne House, you will catch varying glimpses of University of Birmingham’s clocktower. Standing 100m high, ‘Old Joe’ was constructed between 1900-1908 to commemorate the first Chancellor, Joseph Chamberlain. The views from Winterbourne are a reminder of the interwoven history of Winterbourne and the University.
14. Moor Pool Spade Winterbourne’s first owner John Nettlefold was a significant figure in the ‘garden city’ movement, and a pioneer in Birmingham’s housing reform, seen in the allotments, sports facilities and entertaining spaces he included in his design of the Moor Pool Estate in Harborne. This spade – in the hallway – was used by his wife Margaret to make the first incision as building began in 1907.
15. Portrait of Margaret Standing at the end of the long ground floor hallway, Byam Shaw’s portrait of Margaret Nettlefold is difficult to miss. She is shown stepping from the terrace into the dining room (now the Terrace Tearoom), with the family dog, Scruff at her feet. Family photographs show this painting is one of the only items to remain exactly where the family originally had it.
16. The Nursery captures the liveliness of the Nettlefold family home, where the children would have played, learnt and slept. Look out for a Noah’s Ark model* that was part of the Nettlefold family since the 1870s, and the frieze inspired by the little animals, created in 2023 by artist Sarah Moss. *On loan from the University of Birmingham Research and Cultural Collections.
17. The Guest Keen and Nettlefold lion This collage of screws forming the face of a lion once hung at GKN’s Heath Street Mill screw factory in Smethwick, and was created by the workforce. Donated to Winterbourne in 2010, nine years after the factory ceased production. Find it on the first floor inside the house.
18. Printing Press The Winterbourne Press speaks to the rich history of print in Birmingham, and its importance in the Arts and Crafts movement. Located in what was once the Nettlefold’s garage, it contains historic presses saved by Head of Winterbourne, Lee Hale, after they were discovered in the basement of neighbouring Westermere House. Today, they have been restored to working order and are in regular use by a team of volunteers, producing cards, prints and bags which are then sold in the Winterbourne Gift Shop.
19. No visit to Winterbourne is complete without a visit to the Tea Room. Enjoy Afternoon Tea with scones, pastries and mini sandwiches – a sumptuous treat to savour whilst gazing out over the lawns.
20. The Skunk Cabbage growing beyond the Japanese bridge and along the woodland walk is believed to have been planted by John Nicolson in the 1920s. It may not be a plant you’re used to seeing in British soil, as it’s an incredibly invasive, non-native plant, now officially included on the ‘banned’ list. Don’t worry though, existing populations of the plant are allowed to remain in the UK so long as they are not sold or allowed to escape any further into the wild. We control our population by snipping out the seeds before they ripen to stop them spreading further.
21. If you’re caught off guard by a seasonal April shower when visiting us this spring, take shelter in the John’s Japanese Tea House.
22. At this time of year, visitors are often seen capturing photos of the beautiful blossom that marks the arrival of spring. Before you even enter through the front door of Winterbourne, make sure to admire the beautiful blossom on the cherry tree by the car park.
23. Rivalling the beauty of the blossom, the rhododendrons are also bursting into bloom. Wander through the Rhododendron Walk to admire their vibrant colours.
24. The Pergola, also introduced by Nicolson, is a distinctive Arts and Crafts feature of Winterbourne. With wisteria, clematis and vines growing up the pillars and along the beams, the structure really comes to life in the spring. The beautiful purple wisteria is soon to flower in May.
25. The Winterbourne Press is home to several 19th century printing presses, restored to working order and kept in constant use by our Printing Press volunteers. On most Wednesdays and Fridays, volunteers can be seen beavering away printing bags and cards that are then sold just a few short steps away in the Winterbourne Gift Shop.
26. With many of our Printing Press volunteers having previously worked in the trade, they now play a vital role in passing on the craft of letterpress printing to younger volunteers and visitors. This month, we also welcomed tutor Suzanne Morris to Winterbourne, as she hosted an Introduction to Letterpress workshop. Keep your eyes out for more events celebrating the craft of letterpress printing in the coming months!
27. Having been used for everything a student accommodation to offices for the Continuing Studies department, many original features Winterbourne have been removed over the years. Help us in our continued efforts to bring the warmth of the Nettlefold family home back to life and reinstate an Arts and Crafts fireplace in Ken’s room by purchasing a raffle ticket when you next pop into the Winterbourne Giftshop.
28. As the sun comes out and the weather warms up, visitors can once again enjoy a cup of tea and slice of cake on the Terrace. If you’re lucky, you might also be joined by the Terrace Tearoom’s resident robin.
29. Winterbourne is deeply committed to helping our community to cultivate their green fingers and grow their love green spaces. Winterbourne’s Education Team – including our Learning Officer, horticulture tutors, volunteers, members of the garden team, and arts and crafts tutors from around the West Midlands – work hard to curate and facilitate a programme of courses and workshops for the community to enjoy.
30. Did you know that the dipping pond is fed by rainwater funnelled from rooftops via underground pipes? At this time of year, you might spot couple of ducks enjoying a moment of peace in the dipping pond.
31. Winterbourne is home to the University of Birmingham Herbarium, a treasure trove of dried plant specimens preserved and classified for study and research. Make sure to visit the permanent exhibition, ‘The Dry Garden: Treasures from the University Herbarium’ on the first floor of the house to get a closer look at the collection’s highlights.
32. In the front drive and amongst the borders, a host of golden daffodils and narcissi will make your heart dance when you visit this month!
33. As Easter approaches, the chocolate vine is poised to bloom. Look out for the striking purple-brown flowers with their delicate chocolate-vanilla scent. Delicious!
34. We have various sculptures around the garden from the Lettering Arts Trust ‘National Art and Memory’ collection, sculpted by some of the UK’s finest letter-carving artists.
35. Our latest exhibition, “Further Than Memory Can Reach” by Carolyn Blake celebrates the people who have lived and played in the gardens here at Winterbourne, as well as those who visit and care for the garden today. Explore the exhibition on your next visit, and allow Carolyn’s work to take you on a journey through Winterbourne’s history.
36. ‘The Summons’ in our hallway is a replica of one designed by William Morris’s company and depicts a scene from the Holy Grail: the moment a strange damsel summons the Knights of the Round Table to go on the quest. The almost-complete set of tapestries is held by Birmingham Museums Trust.
37. Upstairs, admire Edward Strutt MP’s hand-embroidered parliamentary court dress, complete with wig and tricorn hat – a family heirloom. No one’s entirely sure how it ended up in the Nettlefold family possessions, but we do have a photograph of Hugh Nettlefold wearing it to a fancy dress ball in 1891, styled as Louis XVI.
38. Did you know the rosewood piano which sits in reception was made by John Benjamin Tolkien, the grandfather of The Lord of the Rings author JRR Tolkien?
39. The elegant lime trees which line the Lime Walk are pruned twice a year to maintain its striking two-dimensional hedge-on-stilts shape. Now is a good time to admire this work, before the leaves bud.
40. The stepping stones across the stream bring the child out in everyone.
41. Discover how glasshouses manufactured in 19th century Birmingham transformed British gardens, bringing tender fruits and delicate herbs from hotter climes to our tables for the first time, at a lunchtime talk on Tuesday 8 April. Lunchtime Talk: The History of Glasshouses – Winterbourne House and Garden
42. …and that’s an excellent reason to pop into our Edwardian lean-to glasshouses, which are as old as the house itself (3 on the map)
43. Winterbourne’s garden provides wonderful inspiration for your own back yard. Join our Spring Garden Tour, where our gardener will give you behind-the-scenes insights into the work that goes into making Winterbourne garden so beautiful. Book today for Wednesday 14 May: Spring Garden Tour – Winterbourne House and Garden
44. You can also join us for a walk and talk around the garden to discover Winterbourne’s thriving biodiverse hotspots and learn more about our sustainable practices. Book today for Wednesday 7 May: No Mow May: Walk and Talk
45. Winterbourne was built for the Nettlefold family and it’s a magical place for children to play in. Discover every nook and cranny in April with our Green Kingdom garden trail celebrating a new book by Cornelia Funke ‘The Green Kingdom’. The Green Kingdom: Garden Trail – Winterbourne House and Garden Suitable for 8 to 13-year-olds.
46. To launch 2025’s celebration year, the Nut Walk planted by Margaret Nettlefold was decorated with 125 kokedamas.
47. Winterbourne’s garden is made on meandering – not straight – lines. Look down the garden from the dipping pond to see how the path wavers.
48. Hunt down the scarlet North American Trumpet Pitchers in the Carnivorous Glasshouses.
49. Japanese Bridge – create your own Monet-inspired insta pic!
50. Winterbourne is a great example of the Arts and Crafts movement, which championed handcrafted textiles and furniture. Can you find William Morris wallpaper in the rooms?
51. Not made for crawling in! Admire the exquisite little christening robes in the nursery.
52. Glimpse behind the scenes with curator Henrietta Lockhart with our lunchtime talks
53. John and Margaret Nettlefold built Winterbourne in 1903 as a comfortable home for their six children: Evelyn, Annie, John, Beatrice, Lois and Valerie. How many family pictures can you spot?
54. Did you know…? In the 1960s Winterbourne was turned into accommodation for female students. We’re celebrating the amazing women who feature in Winterbourne’s history this International Women’s Day with a lunchtime lecture Women in the Archives.
55. Have you visited our newly-refurbished Gift Shop yet? Every penny you spend supports Winterbourne.
56. No visit to Winterbourne is complete without a visit to the Tea Room. Enjoy Afternoon Tea with scones, pastries and mini sandwiches – a sumptuous treat to savour whilst gazing out over the lawns.
57. The Skunk Cabbage growing beyond the Japanese bridge and along the woodland walk is believed to have been planted by John Nicolson in the 1920s. It may not be a plant you’re used to seeing in British soil, as it’s an incredibly invasive, non-native plant, now officially included on the ‘banned’ list. Don’t worry though, existing populations of the plant are allowed to remain in the UK so long as they are not sold or allowed to escape any further into the wild. We control our population by snipping out the seeds before they ripen to stop them spreading further.
58. If you’re caught off guard by a seasonal April shower when visiting us this spring, take shelter in the John’s Japanese Tea House.
59. At this time of year, visitors are often seen capturing photos of the beautiful blossom that marks the arrival of spring. Before you even enter through the front door of Winterbourne, make sure to admire the beautiful blossom on the cherry tree by the car park.