Fletcher Moss Botanical Gardens

It’s variously called the Fletcher Moss Park and the Fletcher Moss Botanical Gardens, and it also includes the Old Parsonage Gardens (the latter has a separate entrance). We went there this afternoon and really liked it; the overall ambiance is quite pleasant and very peaceful. I can’t say the gardens are «gorgeous» and this also isn’t the prime time of year to find a lot in bloom, but it’s all lovely and well worth a leisurely visit. There are plenty of benches — and there’s a café (although we didn’t get anything). As an aside, the neighborhood surrounding the park is really lovely.
Note that there are only a few parking spaces in the parking lot, but there’s lots of parking on the street where two pubs are located.

Manchester city centre is slowly turning into something of a concrete jungle. The skyline is dominated by cranes as you drive down Mancunian way, with so many various ambitious building projects underway. However, it still remains a city with its fair share of open green spaces. Nothing illustrates this better than Fletcher Moss Botanical gardens in Didsbury.
It is a testament to Manchester as a city and its people that they care for, and value the things that matter. That’s why in 2006 the ‘Friends of Fletcher Moss Park and Parsonage Gardens’ group was created. The purpose was for the local community to help the council maintain the Gardens, Stenner Woods and Millgate Fields and its beauty and tranquility.
Alongside the likes of Lyme Park Fletcher Moss is one of my absolute go to places in the summer. Whether it’s for a stroll or a picnic, you’d be hard pressed to find a better alternative in getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Not only are there an incredible amount of unique plants on show (Not that I’d have any clue about this, the folks are both keen gardeners though and LOVE it) but plenty to wet the appetite of exotic bird lovers. Migrants birds from Africa flock here every summer. YES you heard right, amongst those spotted include; Chiff-​chaffs, Willow Warblers, Sand Martins, Swallows, House Martins and Blackcaps and more rarely a Whitethroat. Admittedly I’ve not seen all of them but on one of my recent visits I did find out that the bird I could hear singing was a ring necked parakeet. The range of stunning plants and wildlife make this a sensational place to visit, a piece of heaven on Mancunian earth if you will. There’s also a cute little café here as well with plenty of outdoor seating if you want to relax and enjoy some home made cakes with you coffee/​tea.
For a long period of time I’ve not told people about Fletcher Moss, those in the know already knew about it. However I’m willing to now let all Unilocaleeps in on this hidden gem secret. Come alone for a stroll or with some friends for a picnic, you won’t regret it.

Wow, what a find this place was. After a fairly uneventful Saturday that ended up without much physical movement I used the Unilocal app to type in ‘walks’ and low and behold Fletcher Moss came up with some great reviews and only 3.2 miles from my house.
So after jumping in the car on Sunday morning, we postcoded it on the satnav to get to the car park, only to find that it’s the smallest place ever with room for about 8 cars. No worries fellow walkers, if you find yourself in the same situation just drive down the road 2 minutes and you’ll get to a fairly residential neighbourhood with plenty of parking!
The gardens themselves are fairly small, more of a large park in winter if the truth be known but still nice for a walk around and it was full of friends and couples walking around enjoying the brisk autumn air. The real «walkers paradise» is when you venture through the park and get to the main river which from a bit on mapping looks like it snakes all around the back of Didsbury village to West Didsbury, quite possibly a good 2 hour round walk if you’re taking it laid back.
And with that you can arrange to have a well deserved drink or Sunday lunch in West Didsbury and then head back for your car near Didsbury village or easily get the new tram into Didsbury village or bus.
This walk is great for urban walkers who don’t have time to venture out of the city or can’t be bothered with too much stress on a Sunday afternoon — it ticked both boxes for us :-)

Beautiful place for a stroll

A reason as to why Manchester truly has it all — Fletcher Moss.
Woods, fields, tennis courts, wildlife, beautiful sculptured botanical gardens and most of all the feeling of being next to nature in a bustling city.
It’s peaceful and pretty, a great place to ride bikes round and a place to go to have BBQs in the summer with friends. Well worth a walk round for an hour or a whole lazy afternoon in the sunshine. An unexpected beauty.

Do you ever get that feeling where the whole of a Sunday has slipped away? All you’ve done is get up, laze around in your pjs, have some brunch, laze around in your pjs, and now it’s about to get dark? When I get this feeling I always make a quick trip down to these gardens, which are beautiful at any time of year. Alderman Fletcher Moss gave these gardens to the people of Manchester in 1919. What a generous bloke! They also have a friendly resident cat.
I’d especially recommend the sloping rock garden, but the path can be very slippery after rainfall (OK, so maybe my body wasn’t in its most stable of states when I fell over here, not once but twice!). There are various other gardens including rose gardens, open fields, woods, tennis courts and a café. It is possible to follow a ‘wetland walk’ trail which takes you to the Mersey, which you can follow back to Stenner Lane and Didsbury village, if it’s not already dark!

I can’t stress enough how wonderful these gardens are to while away a summer afternoon in. These gardens remind me a bit of the Brooklyn botanical gardens in New York as it’s split up into different areas — the botanical gardens themselves, the ponds replete with lily pads, seating areas, lawn tennis courts, a cute coffee shop and the woods. Absolutely stunning, magical.