Staunton Country Park - Hampshire County Council

16/06/2026

Have you spotted our Kiwi vines in bloom? 🌿✨

If you’ve entered the gardens from the main car park recently, you may have passed beneath our stunning kiwi vines—now covered in beautiful flowers at the entrance.

This fascinating East Asian climber has a long history. First recorded in China as early as the 800s, it was originally known in the West as the Chinese gooseberry due to its familiar taste. It wasn’t until the 20th century, when commercial varieties were developed in New Zealand, that it gained the name we know today—the kiwifruit 🥝
Its original Chinese name, “macaque peach,” comes from the monkeys that were particularly fond of the fruit!

There’s even more to discover—kiwifruit plants have separate male and female vines. The female flowers don’t produce nectar, but they cleverly attract pollinating insects by using fake pollen. The more pollen they receive from the males (transported by insects), the more seeds they produce (up to 1,000 per fruit!)—and the bigger the fruit grows.

Next time you visit, take a moment to look up and enjoy this seasonal highlight at the garden entrance 💚

15/06/2026

Woodland Wellbeing will be at Staunton Country Park - Hampshire County Council on Wednesday for Get up and Go Havant Forest bathing sessions🌿 Click the link to find out more 🔽

Our next Forest Bathing session is on Wednesday 17th June 5pm at the Staunton Country Park! Woodland Wellbeing

Book your space now:
https://www.getupandgohavant.com/service-page/evening-forest-bathing-at-staunton-cp?referral=service_list_widget

What is Forest Bathing?
The simple method of being calm and quiet amongst the trees, observing nature around you whilst breathing deeply can help us de-stress and boost health and wellbeing in a natural way.

What to expect?
A woodland wellbeing forest bathing session normally lasts for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. A mindful, slow paced stroll immersed in the natural environment and we will be moving at approximately 2-3 miles an hour. There will be invitations to join in activities developed to help you engage all your senses in your Shinrin- Yoku experience as well as opportunity for quiet reflection.

13/06/2026

That’s a wrap for Volunteers’ Week last week! 🌧️💚

And yes… it’s still raining! But what a fun, action-packed week it’s been. From gardening in the rain 🌿 and volunteer-led talks, to laughter-filled get-togethers, it’s been a fantastic celebration of our brilliant volunteers.
We ended on a high by welcoming 8 new potential volunteers for a taster session 🎉 After learning about the parks (and enjoying some all-important brownies!), they tried their hand at gardening or explored our archaeology project with a guided walk around the sites.
We can’t wait to welcome them back to future sessions and see them become part of our amazing volunteer community. 💚
✨ Fancy getting involved? We run induction and taster sessions every month—a perfect way to find out more and join the fun.
👉Register interest here https://www.hants.gov.uk/thingstodo/countryside/get-involved/volunteering

04/06/2026

Volunteers’ Week update…a little rain won’t stop us! 🌧️💚

It might be a soggy one this year, but our Volunteers’ Week celebrations are going full steam ahead!
Our gardening groups have been out in full force on Tuesday and Wednesday, joined by some fantastic volunteer-led talks as part of our Gardening Lead Volunteer takeover. It’s been brilliant to see our volunteers sharing their knowledge and passion 🌿
One of the more memorable moments had to be our Hollies Walk & Talk—where we embraced the great British weather and ventured out in heavy rain to explore the park’s holly collection, along with the myths, history and folklore behind them. If only we’d had a spell for sunshine! ☔
Luckily, there was a chance to warm up afterwards with an indoor bat talk from our very own dedicated volunteer “Batman”! 🦇
And of course, the highlight so far…our celebrations 🎉

It’s been such a lovely opportunity for everyone to slow down, spend time together, and enjoy some well-earned social time after sessions. Great food – and even better company!
✨ More celebrations to come—stay tuned as we continue our of appreciation!

02/06/2026

"Look mum, i can do it too!"

Welcoming our newest friend to Staunton Lake 😍

01/06/2026

Happy Volunteers’ Week! 💚
June is not only but also the —a perfect time to celebrate the incredible people who make our park so special.
We may be a little biased, but we truly believe our Volunteer Team are the best—the heart and soul of Staunton Country Park - Hampshire County Council community spirit. This week is all about recognising this and saying a huge thank you. Quite simply, we couldn’t do it without our volunteers… and we wouldn’t want to!
Our volunteers don’t just care for the park’s landscape—they bring kindness, laughter, generosity, friendship, and a wonderful sense of community to everything they do. 🌿
With The Big Lunch 2026 | Eden Project Communities, happening this weekend—celebrating friendship, food and fun—we’re starting the celebrations early! 🎉
Throughout Volunteers’ Week, as well as our activities, we’ll be bringing everyone together with daily gatherings after sessions, giving volunteers and staff the chance to connect, relax, and celebrate together.
✨ Stay tuned for updates from our action-packed week of appreciation and fun!

29/05/2026

🌹 A final flourish of roses at Staunton... 🌹

Our roses may be nearing the end of their season, but there’s still plenty of beauty to enjoy—especially from some of our later varieties now in full bloom.
Among them are three with fascinating, globe-spanning stories:

✨ The Musk rose, originating from Iran and Afghanistan, was first mentioned in the 16th century by Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
✨ The Cherokee rose, brought from China to America in the late 1700s, later became the state flower of Georgia, symbolising the forced removal of the Cherokee people from the state in 1838.
✨ And Blush Noisette, a truly international hybrid, created from one of the oldest Chinese roses 'Old Blush' and sent from Paris by a nursery man Louis Noisette to his brother Philippe in America. Philippe crossed this with the Musk rose, and the end result, Blush Noisette arrived in England in the early 1800s.

Together, they form a beautiful international trio—well worth a visit while they’re still flowering. 🌿🌸

28/05/2026

22/05/2026

🌿💚 Growing Together at Staunton Country Park! 💚🌿
As part of being a new RHS - Royal Horticultural Society Partner Garden, we have recently formed a Gardening Lead Volunteer Team to take our horticulture to the next level! This new volunteer group teamed up with our wonderful friends at The Right to Work, who support adults with learning disabilities through meaningful work experiences. Together, and with funding from the The Woodland Trust , we planted a brand new mixed native hedge in Storey Gardens, our beautiful walled garden.
Under glorious sunshine, volunteers worked side by side planting oak, hazel, crab apple and dogwood whips, learning new skills, sharing knowledge, and enjoying the satisfaction of creating something that will grow and thrive for years to come. The new hedge will soon offer shade, habitat, and a natural boundary for The Right To Work team’s outdoor area.
The day was filled with teamwork, laughter, learning — and a lot of pride. It was a truly inspiring way to launch our Gardening Lead Volunteer Team, and a brilliant example of how gardening brings people together. 🌱✨
A huge thank you to everyone involved. 🌿💚

21/05/2026

Woodland Wellbeing was back with Get up and Go Havant at Staunton Country Park - Hampshire County Council enjoying the calmness of the woodland during another mindful Forest bathing session.
If you are looking for an opportunity to take some time to pause, breath and appreciate the stillness of the forest head to Woodland Wellbeing for upcoming sessions 🍃