Our Trees and Shrubs

The original garden design was planted mostly with conifers, heathers and alpines, with some primulas, magnolias, rhododendrons and azaleas. But over time more diversity has been introduced and now more native species are also being added along with additional plants of interest from around the world.

The first gift to the garden was a Monkey Puzzle tree which was only 46cm (18 inches) tall when given to the Neils in 1973 by Mrs Davina Baird.

​Later, the Neils also acquired a White Fir, originating in Western North America. These typically grow up to 60m (200 feet) tall and 3m (9 feet) in diameter.
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In 1981 the Neils were given a Coast Redwood (Sequoia) bud, brought from California by a friend, Mrs Sylvia Sinton. After two years soaking in a bucket it germinated, developing a shoot which resulted in the three trees we see today. The young trees were finally planted in 1983.

Sequoias include the tallest living trees on earth, growing up to about 115m (380 feet) tall and 8m (27 feet) in diameter.

​We also have a Dawn Redwood planted in 2003 by Claudia Pottier who was the gardener here for 22 years, until 2024. The Metasequoia was first described from fossil records in 1941 in central China, and then found by scientists as living trees a few years later.

Scot’s Pine (Pinus sylvestris) has been planted throughout the garden and is now mature and a dominant feature among the woodland that has developed here over the past sixty years. We call it Scot’s Pine but it’s natural range stretches across Europe and Russia and into Mongolia and China.

The Chilean Lantern tree (Crinodendron hookerianum) we have is still fairly small at around two metres tall and may eventually grow to eight metres.​