Redwood groove that is unavailable to the visitors due to unsafe paths

At its inception by the Campbells over a century ago, Crarae Gardens’ Reginald Farrer was plant hunting across the world in China, Nepal, and Tibet, creating Britain’s best example of a Himalayan garden. Eleven miles from Inveraray in Scotland, there is a unique wet woodland of one hundred acres showing unmanicured plant life from bamboo to Rhododendrons amid mountainous terrain.

Only last week, I was fortunate enough to see it personally, alongside my American boss and his wife, as I took them on a tour of Scotland. My work colleague Derek Shankland led us through the garden; he has been tasked to improve the garden after a year of its being neglected. This comes after a history of financial troubles leading to the eventual overtaking of the gardens by the National Trust of Scotland in 2001 – now, there is an opportunity to see these gardens revitalised, continuing the Campbell’s legacy of looking outward (to countries like Chile) to create their own garden in Scotland.

This Picea Abies was a Christmas tree in the Crarae manor before being planted out into the garden.