The designs for the formal gardens around the Castle were submitted in c.1850 by John and William Smith, and a 'revised design' for the garden was drawn by John Thomas. Prince Albert approved the designs and by 1876 the Gardeners Chronicle recorded 'the upper flower garden; sloping down toward the west in two grass terraces, 8' broad, with two divisions filled with Pelargoniums, Rhododendron hirsutum, Roses and Juniper...'. 'In the centre of each (division) is a full-sized bronze wild boar, placed, as it were, sitting on its haunches, with its head and shoulders visible above the foliage, which has a strange but telling effect.' The deer statues were also located in this garden by then.
Roses predominate in the west garden with pinks, lavender, various alpines and ferns bordering the sunken garden.
