It opened to the public in 1968, and now holds regular garden festivals and outdoor theatre productions.

Great Comp Garden is the creation of the late Roderick and Joyce Cameron (formerly Joyce Trafford Riggall),[1] after they moved to the 17th Century Manor in 1957 (which has been Grade II* listed since 1952),[2] with the idea of developing the garden into a plantsman’s delight.

The garden has very good displays of magnolias (they have over 30 varieties of this shrub),[3]Azaleas, salvias, crocosmias, dahlias and other exotic plants in the region.

When his wife died in 1992, Roderick set up the Great Comp Charitable Trust to keep the garden open and running.

[1] 286118 After Roderick died, the trust sold several items from inside the house including a George III sycamore tea caddy and ivory and horn-veneered miniature chess table.

[10] The garden also is a venue for outdoor theatre productions, such as William Shakespear's The Comedy of Errors, starring Jake Hendriks in 2011.