Gardens: The creme de la creme of Fife's gardens go on display as part of the forthcoming Diamond Jubilee celebrations MAKING plans for how you will celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee? Perhaps street parties, corgi walking and flag-waving aren't really your bag. How about visiting a dozen beautiful gardens, as part of the Fife Diamond Garden Festival running from 18-20 May in honour of the royal occasion? The event comes courtesy of Scotland's Gardens Scheme, who arrange for private gardens to open to the public in aid of charity. A proportion of the funds raised from this festival - with a £20 ticket admitting visitors to all 12 of the gardens - will be passed to Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres, as well as Perennial: The Gardeners" Royal Benevolent Society, The National Trust for Scotland and the Queen's Nursing Institute Scotland. Lady Catherine Erskine, Sally Lorimore and Lindsay Murray, all of whom are Fife-based organisers for Scotland's Gardens Scheme, have selected a mixed bag of green spaces. "We wanted them to be contrasting, so hopefully there will be something for everyone," explains Murray, who is based in St Andrews. We're also trying to broaden the demographic of people who come to the open gardens. Some people might think the events are a bit elitist, but they aren't. The final line-up is Barham; Cambo House (where the official opening will take place on 18 May); Strathmore Cottage; Teasses; Glassmount House; Micklegarth; The Murrel; 46 South Street St Andrews; Newton Barns; Newton Mains; Rosewells; St Leonards School Grounds and the Headmaster's Garden, all of which are dotted across Fife, from the Forth to the Tay. The latter four venues are especially exciting, as they will be opening to the public for the first time. Murray explains, "We said they wouldn't have to do the ticket-selling or the teas." This is a rare opportunity to visit the Headmaster's Garden in the grounds of St Leonards School, which, rather than featuring birch, boasts neat borders, a mature willow, laburnum and pink weigelias. "It dates back to the 19th century, but has been under restoration over the last three years, since the current school headmaster, Michael Carslaw, and his wife, Nicola, took over," explains Murray. It's in the grounds of St Leonards School, where there are a few Jubilee trees, which have plaques on their trunks. Two of these were planted in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. There's also one for King George V's Silver Jubilee in 1935. You won't find anything quite as historic at Rosewells in Pitscottie, which is owned by artists Birgitta and Gordon MacDonald. This space, which has never been available to view before, is one of the festival's younger gardens, at only 16 years old. "It was originally a ploughed field, but now it's beautiful," says Murray. They've selected the most interesting plants and have stuck their necks out to get the ones they wanted. There are all sorts of lovely things, including auricular, acers, fritillaries, primula, trillium and rhododendrons. The MacDonalds" one-and-a-half-acre garden is an exercise in contrasting textures. A hazy frame has been created by Scots pine, while the inner space features a blanket of shrubs punctuated by meconopsis or agapanthus flowers, and a lawn peppered by tiny orchids. It's obviously been designed by gardeners who have an artistic eye, as well as practical green fingers. "None of the trees or hedges was here before we put them in," explains Birgitta, who has just gone freelance after 25 years of management and teaching at Edinburgh College of Art. We used tiny plants. Cheap and cheerful was our motto, but we have lots of nice scented things now and some lovely magnolias. We thought about texture and colour and consistency when we were creating the garden. I do the same when composing my tapestries. Rosewells isn't the only contemporary garden - others can rival it in terms of youth. For example, Newton Barns in Auchtermuchty is a mere decade old, while Newton Mains in Falkirk is just three. The latter space was developed after its new owners, Tony and Ruth Lear, had to clear 1000 tons of rubble that had been left on the site behind their house. They've turned what was a building site into a botanical space that features a large rockery, with borders and lawns. For visitors to these immature plots, it could be informative to see what Murray describes as "gardens in the making" and, hopefully, talk to their caretakers. "It depends on the individual, but most of the owners like to be outside, chatting to guests about what's been planted," she explains. After all, the events are there for inspiration and artistic appreciation. When it comes to the latter, Murray knows which of the dozen gardens is her favourite. "It seems invidious to select one, but The Murrel in Aberdour is amazing," she says. It's an outstanding house in the Arts and Crafts style, with a garden that goes on forever. It's something really special. In fact, this green space features six formal acres, with woodland, a meadow, formal rose garden and a rockery. That's a lot to get ship-shape in time for the festival. "They'll be busily working away and tidying right now - primping up," says Murray. We hope that all the gardens will be at their peak in May. For more information on the Fife Diamond Garden Festival, 18-20 May, see www.scotlandsgardens.org, £20 tickets allow entry to all 12 gardens.