In the garden: A mighty fir that was laid low by storm

Winter is not the most popular time to visit gardens or get out into nature, but the benefits that it can bestow are not to be underestimated.

The days are short, and getting out into the fresh air can be even more essential to wellbeing than during the summer months, once you are well wrapped up.

While a garden may not be looking at its peak in the winter months, there is always some inspiration to be taken from observations of what it has to offer.

A trip to Kilmacurragh in Co. Wicklow to visit the botanical garden there delighted me recently, with some amazing trees, garden features and wider landscapes.

The garden are laid out within about 52 acres, with a Queen Anne style house which is in ruins at the heart of the gardens. These are described as ‘Romantic Robinsonian style gardens’. There is some serious gardening history here going back hundreds of years.

The Acton family built the house here in 1697 and remained here for generations, until 1944. The family had a close association with the Moore family, successive curators of Glasnevin Botanical Gardens in Dublin around the 1850s, and at this time there was a lot of development of the garden.

The soil at Glasnevin is not suitable for the cultivation of rhododendrons and other acid-loving plants, and the soil at Kilmacurragh is, and so the close horticultural ties began almost 200 years ago.

It is believed that one of the best collections of Himalayan rhododendrons exists today at Kilmacurragh. The Acton family were in receipt of many wild collected specimens which they provided a home for in their garden.

It is documented that three of a particular plant were planted - one where an expert plant collector believed to be the best spot, one where Thomas Acton believed was the best spot, and one where it was believed was the worst possible spot!

After Kilmacurragh was sold in 1944, the garden fell into disrepair until 1996, when the house and 52 acres surrounding it became part of the National Botanical Garden of Ireland. Since then, much restoration has been undertaken in the garden and there are future plans for the restoration of the house also.

A return visit for me goes without saying next spring or summer, but as gardens go, a winter introduction was not disappointing, as the mature, majestic trees that grow there speak volumes.

The house itself is in ruins and some of the outbuildings are home to The Acton Café serving some very tasty dishes.

It is located at the heart of Wicklow countryside and it is now under the care of the OPW, housing important collections of plants from all over the world.

It is free to visit and maps are available in the café to guide you around the alleys and walkways that lead to different features within the garden.

The most impressive route has to be the broad walk which is lined with rhododendrons, there are many iconic photos of the pink petals covering the pathway.

It is perhaps the feature that the garden is best known for, and it was planted in the 1870 by Janet and Thomas Acton. Broad walks were a popular garden feature in Britain and Ireland from the 1840s onwards due in large part to the creation of the Great Broad Walk at Kew Gardens.

The design of the walk allowed enough space for two Victorian ladies with wide-rimmed dresses to walk side by side down along the path.

The broad walk at Kilmacurragh measures approximately seven metres wide and it is planted with Irish yew and Rhododendron ‘Altaclarense’, which are responsible for the crimson carpet effect in April/May.

With hindsight, I am really glad that I made this garden visit during November to visit some gardens in Wicklow, as there was considerable damage caused in Kilmacurragh since as a result of Storm Darragh. In the region of 120 trees have been lost, many of them in the eastern shelter belt, which will have consequences for the garden going forward.

A silver fir (Abies alba) that was brought to the gardens from the Avondale Estate in 1790 was one of the biggest losses. It is always sad when a storm takes out magnificent trees like this, and then it can also be seen as an opportunity to replant and begin again with something new.

The gardens were closed for a week after Storm Darragh but have since reopened.

Plant of the Week

Kilmacurragh is a plant person’s heaven, with unusual trees and shrubs at every turn.

One plant which was heavy with glossy red berries in mid November and looking very good indeed was Viburnum betulifolium, or the birch-leaved viburnum.

It is a deciduous shrub, but it had not yet shed its leaves during our mild autumn, and it was the berries that were the eye-catching quality at the start of winter.

As gardeners, we are always on the look-out for attractive additions to the garden at any time of the year, but particularly in winter.

This shrub is native to China and hardy in Ireland. It can get up to 2.5 metres in height and spread and will do well in full sun or partial shade on most well drained soils. It also has attractive mounded clusters of white flowers in the springtime, which swell over summer to produce the vibrant red berries. This is definitely one for the wish list!

One of the best things about visiting this garden was that a lot of plants are labelled and so there is some great learning and discovery when taking a turn around the gardens.