Garden and Grounds
The formal listed avenues leading to the house from the A307 are formed by more than 250 trees stretching east from the house to the arched gate house at Petersham, and south across the open expanse of Ham Common where it is flanked by a pair of more modest gate houses. A third avenue to the west of the house no longer exists, whilst the view to and from the Thames completes the principal approaches to the house.
The house has changed little in 300 years, and the same applies to its formal gardens, which feature the oldest Orangery in Britain, an icehouse and a dairy. The National Trust has a tea room for visitors.
The tea terrace is reputed to have the oldest Christ's thorn bush in the country. Walnut and chestnut trees in the outer courtyard act as roosts and nesting sites for a large flock of green parakeets.
Read more about this topic: Ham House
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