A big thank you to Chris Russell who organised the society’s trip to the gardens of Northumbria with Johnson's Coaches.

The first stop was to visit Harlow Carr, near the Forest of Knaresborough, an ancient royal hunting lodge.

The Royal Horticultural Society opened the garden in 1950 and it is dominated by water, stone and woodlands.

Harry Wright, the owner, developed the Limestone Rock Garden and later added The Rose Revolution Borders, Gardens through Time, Winter Walk, Annual Meadows, Willow Woven Sculptures, Rhododendron Glade and the new Alpine House in 2010.

After settling into their hotel at Hexham, the group headed to Roman Vindolando and the Roman Museum. The ruined fort lies in magnificent countryside next to a sweeping section of Hadrian’s Wall and based at the site of Carvoran Fort with all its military legacy.

Then it was a visit to Wallington, a National Trust property since 1942.

The estate in 100 acres was owned by the Trevelyan family who created landscaped lawns with dragon statues, woodlands, lakes, farmland and a walled garden. which was a colourful haven of tranquillity.

The impressive house had a grand Central Hall with eight large wall paintings depicting 2,000 years of history and a Swiss Dragon sleigh from 1600s. There was also a collection of dolls houses and China dolls and a Cabinet of Curiosities displaying fossils, porcupine, and tusks.

On the third day, the group explored the town of Hexham and visited the famous abbey founded in 674 and once a monastery.

Then the group travelled to Cragside. The estate was spectactular with tea rooms overlooking picturesque lakes. William Armstrong, the late owner, was a brilliant engineer, inventor and landscape genius and his house was the first in Europe to be lit by hydro-electricity. He followed the Arts and Crafts Movement and his home was built in Tudor Revival architecture, with incredible gardens.

On Wednesday, it was time to visit the famous Alnwick Castle. It was a glorious day and a pleasure to watch the cascading waterfalls and beautiful gardens at the top of the steps.

The Duke of Northumberland and Percy families have lived there for 700 years and the fantastic castle is one of the largest inhabited castles in Europe. One of the highlights was smelling the perfume of 3,000 David Austin roses.

It is a children’s paradise with Knight's Quest, Dragon's Quest, Tree House and the castle was used for filming Harry Potter films.

After dinner, members changed into fancy dress for the ‘Witches and Warlocks’ evening. It was hilarious seeing all the ingenious costumes and Hazel Rogers, Ian McCrae or Marie the Skeleton were the winners.

On the way home, there was a visit to the National Trust’s Beningborough Hall, an 18th century neo-classical mansion near York. It had interactive galleries, portraits and fine interiors.

There was also a walled gardens where they grow produce for the restaurant and members enjoyed lunch before returning home.