Old Court Nurseries & Picton Garden, Great Malvern

Housing the RHS collection of Michealmas Daisies, this is a little gem if you love plants and gardening. It's only open in August to October as that's when the Asters are at their best so check the website before you travel but it is a lively tranquil site to walk around in spite of the main road which runs adjacent to it. The pathways take you on a delightful tour of what is essentially someone's working garden. Only £3.50 admission and there are lots of plants to buy when you exit through the Nursery.

The Picton Garden holds the National Collection of Michaelmas Daises – not the most exciting plants at first thought, but surprisingly varied and versatile plants when you put them in the hands of a great gardener. This is a Gem of Garden. I don't know what it looks like in Spring, but at this time of the year, you are snapping away with your camera to record all the wonderful colour combinations. I particularly liked the yellow and green of one of the Rudbeckias contrasting with the mauvy-blue of one of the Michaelmas Daisies – magic. I also really enjoyed the Autumn power players like the Echinaceas and sedums. Verbena bonariensis provided a deeper purple backdrop in many of the borders and there was a lovely shrubby type of what looked like a pompom Dahlia that really zinged. There is also a very nice collection of Acers – the Acer japonica 'Aureum' seemed to float and shimmer in the shade of the glade at the far end of the garden. I'm always a bit wary of sculpture in the garden, as it can look a bit pretentious sometimes – but I thought these free-falling wire sculptures were fun, and complemented the style of planting. In short I think this is a great garden to visit in the Autumn. The planting is wonderful, it's not too big, and it's fairly flat for those of us who are getting on a bit. The attached Old Court Nursery sells a whole range of Michaelmas Daisies in various shades and colours, which were reasonably priced and well-labelled.