Beautiful gardens! Lots to see. Many paths to follow, lovely water features and flower beds. Wish…read moreI'd brought my hiking poles.

80 acres of various gardens, forests, meadows, babbling woodland streams augmented with a lovely…read moremanor house, an old saw mill and a chapel. House is private, roped off, no visitors allowed. Many trails criss-cross the property. My wife & I spent 4.5 hours walking and did not see it all. There are elevation changes of 400 feet on both sides of the central stream, so you will get some aerobic exercise if you tour the entire property. When you finish up and are tired, thirsty and hungry there is a cafe. Also for shop-o-holics there are several boutiques. Souvenirs and gifts galore available. Also for locals there is a considerable nursery of great garden plants. Quality and vigor of the plants look outstanding. For reasonably physically fit nature lovers a visit here is highly recommended.

North Western Gardens is a small area of greenery, with a few well tended flower beds, better known…read moreto locals as Bog Island. The Island part is a reference to the old road layout when the Gardens were located between two sections of busy road and the Bog part is a reference to the underground toilet block which lies below the grass. The 'new' road layout means it's no longer an island but the bogs are still there. It's also home to a bizarre totem pole which I suspect is meant to welcome motorists coming into the town centre via the one way system. It's not quite an island of tranquility, located as it is between a busy road on one side and a grotty amusement arcade churning out electronic bleeps on the other side but all town centres should have a little bit of green in amongst all the over-development.

Adding yet another dose of splendid intrigue to an already mightily lovely park is the Palm House…read more A Victorian temple to verdure, the greenhouse was built in 1896 and served strutting park-goers until that pesky Second World War, when the fear of moonlight bouncing off the glass and into the eyes of Luftwaffe pilots meant the whole thing was slopped over with grey and green paint. It didn't work. A bomb landing nearby blasted the glass out in 1941 and it wasn't re-glazed for nine years afterwards. Closed in the 80s amid structural fears, the house was ultimately saved following the Council's 'Sponsor a Pane' programme. Now it stands in a striking location, viewable from even more points since the park's rejuvenation when some trees were lopped down to allow the palm house to be seen from everywhere.

As if Sefton Park itself wasn't good enough, they have a well renovated Palm House located just ten…read moreminutes away from the city centre and away from all the hustle and bustle. Glittering in the park, this octagonal grade II listed, three tiered Victorian glasshouse is quite a showboat and open throughout the year. It is a perfect place to relax amongst the exotic plants from around the world and statues of naturalists and explorers. You can even time your visit to enjoy the programme of events for all ages. Sefton Park Palm House is also available for private and corporate hire therefore it would be ideal to celebrate a special occasion. Opening times vary throughout the whole year and it is best to check the website for details. Entry is free for all and I would definitely recommend a visit if it's your first time.

Ness Botanic Gardens is a treasure for garden lovers. The outstanding collections of seasonal…read moreflowers, trees and shrubs ensure there is always something of beauty and interest to enjoy. Amongst their colourful displays is breathtaking heather, rock, water and herb gardens to add to the lush surroundings. This is simply a heavenly place for those who love nature at its purest. There is now also a new visitor centre and 'Four Seasons' café with a toddlers playground. In addition, they offer seasonal event programmes, pre-booked guided tours, civil wedding and family functions so it is quite a versatile venue. The gardens are open daily (apart from Christmas Day and Boxing Day), February to October 10am-5pm and November to January 10am-4.30pm.

These amazing gardens were the creation of a cotton merchant, Arthur Bully over 110 years ago. The…read moregardens were always open to the public but after his death they were presented to the University. The garden introduced hundreds of new plants to Britain and took up to 48 gardeners to manage the 46 acres. As you might expect, the University has a focus on education and research but a few years ago opened a visitor centre with café, shop, lecture room and exhibition space. The airy visitor centre cost £2m and is an attractive wooden building. The café serves some tasty cakes and snacks. Some of the many plants grown on site are available to purchase from the nursery. The visitor centre is free to visit but the gardens cost £6.50 for adults.

The National Wildflower Centre is an award winning independent charity funded through public…read moresupport. They run a seasonal visitor attraction that showcases wildflowers in a natural environment with lots of ideas that you can replicate at home. As well as this, they provide information and raise awareness about the importance of wildflowers and encourage people to learn about the creation and management of new wildflower habitats (which they call creative conservation). The centre has a mix of refurbished old buildings and new architecture, with courtyards and a walled garden demonstration space where they show seasonal displays of wildflowers. As well as this, there is plenty for children to do such as explore woodland, find minibeasts and burn off some energy on their climbing wall and play equipment. For a plantastic day out, choose the National Wildflower Centre in Knowsley!

Like flowers? Of course you do, you'd have to be the ultimate miserablist not to like flowers…read more Heck, Morrissey's a miserablist and even he likes to swing a bouquet around onstage. So if Moz is in need of more blooms to enhance his performance, you might want to point him in this direction. Certainly the place to appreciate a good plant, the National Wildflower Centre is the work of registered charity Landlife, so get ready to feel good about yourself. A great visitor attraction, the idea behind the centre is to allow people to enjoy the habitats they've created for wildflowers, raise awareness of the importance of foliage and enable wildlife to thrive and multiply. Birds, bugs and animals alike have found the environment perfect for settling down since the centre opened almost ten years ago, and the fact that it's part of Victorian Court Hey Park, a 35 acre attraction in itself, speaks very highly for it. A peaceful ambience and a superb family environment, it's well worth taking the bus ride out of the city centre for. Not only is it good for sightseers, there are also unique conference facilities available if you fancy holding an event with a little bit of pizzazz. You'd have to be very hard of heart not to be inspired by this place, there's no other word for it - it's truly gorgeous. Any money the centre raises goes to the charity so just by visiting you'll certainly make a difference. Do take the time to stop and smell the roses.

Beautiful place to go and have a stroll. Ample space to take the kids to kick a football about with…read morethe dog in tow. Small park with enough play area for the kids to be kept enetrtained. The only down side is the price for the tennis courts which has rose drmatically in the last year.

Not to be confused with Wavertree Playground (the Mystery) or Wavertree Technology Park (just…read moreboring, it doesn't have swings or anything) Wavertree Botanic Park is a rather bland expanse of grass that sits surrounded by thundering, uncaring cars as they make their way down Edge Lane or Wavertree Road. There's a walled garden here where you can sit by a statue looking at either the tired plants or the gleaming white citadel of the old Littlewoods building. Then when you're done with that, you can pass through the gates and back out into the real world. It's the closest you can get to stepping into your own daydreams.