Jungle giant felled by Storm Darragh but young offshoot gives heart
- 11th Dec 2024
The Tree rhododendron stood for around 150 years above the Top Pond until it was uprooted by the gale and the main trunk crashed into the water.
Gardeners assessing the damage were heartened to see that a remaining horizontal limb carries a leafy offshoot which could mean that a new tree of the same species may grow in its place.
Henry Welch, supervisor of the Jungle, said that the tree was the tallest of one of a cluster of rhododendrons around the pond.
“We were sad to see that it had fallen but it wasn’t a total shock as it was one of the oldest in the Jungle and the storm was exceptional,” he said.
“In the springtime it had striking pinky-white flowers and we will certainly miss it but we’re pleased to see that the offshoot seems to be doing well and we’ll encourage it along.”
Henry added that the team had yet to decide what to do with the timber from the fallen tree.
One option could be to use the wood to make an art work in homage to one of the signature trees of the gardens.
Across its 200 acres, Heligan has around 350 rhododendrons and the stately woodland trees are woven deep into its history.
The earliest were raised from seed collected by Charles Darwin’s close friend the renowned botanist Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker in India during his expedition of 1847-51.
One of the most spectacular of the many species is Tree rhododendron (proper name - Rhododendron arboreum), which established itself as the backbone of gardens across the far South West including Heligan.
John Tremayne was the Squire of Heligan back in the mid-19th Century and he was an enthusiastic breeder of plants. The gardens still have a number of dazzling rhododendron hybrids that are believed to have been raised by him.
In 2008 Heligan was granted National Collection Holder status by Plant Heritage for its historic and unique collection of Camellias and Rhododendrons.
