Popular garden ablaze with autumn colour despite drought

You could be forgiven for thinking the wood is on fire when you are dazzled by the striking reds, oranges and yellows of the leaves in the famed glade of acers at the Garden House.

The stunning backdrop to the popular garden and house attraction at Buckland Monachorum is a welcome sight and has again lit up the countryside, despite the months of drought and repeated heatwaves.

There are more obvious clues for the visitor of the trees’ struggle to survive, than with the shrubs and other plants.

Nick Haworth, Garden House head gardener, said: “The trees did start losing leave earlier this summer because of the prolonged heat and extremes of heatwaves which coincided with a long drought over the summer.

“Everyone could see the leaves on certain trees curl and even die and drop. This has resulted in the crowns being thinner and patchy on some tree now turning to their lovely autumnal colours.

“There’s definitely a new pattern of more intense storms with heavy rain and wind during winter and autumn. How trees react to the lack of water and the extremes of heat and the stresses of the storms can’t be predicted, but it could reduce their ability to thrive and grow to their full potential.”

Nick, who used to work at London’s famed Kew Gardens, said he and his team are adapting to this climate change by planting more resilient shrubs and flowers, those that are less prone to dying due to fungal diseases from extra wet winters, for instance. The Garden House does have advantages of being in a valley and facing north, which does protect trees and plants from extremes.

“The typical Cornish and Devon gardens, with camellias and rhododendrons, will no longer be so common in public attractions, he said. “We’ll look to replace with tougher plants. I’ll also look to incorporate more coppicing with a cycle of mulching and cutting back.”