This September we continue to celebrate a bumper crop of hydrangeas as the mild Cornish weather helps us produce our biggest and most colourful crop to date.
The combination of heavy rainfall over winter followed by prolonged sunny spells and warm temperatures has caused the hydrangeas to grow much larger than normal. With some hydrangea heads almost matching the size of a human head and which are likely to flower late into the autumn. This years crop will add some extraordinary autumn colour to the garden.
Darren Dickey, Head Gardner, says, "This year has been one of the best flowering displays ever and with more flowers still forming the Hydrangeas will continue to light up the valley for weeks to come. The older flowers also bring added interest during the autumn with the whites taking on pinkish tinges and the blues going a lovely emerald green."
The garden is home to over 2 acres of hydrangeas, which normally flower from mid-July to late autumn or sometimes even as late as Christmas. Their signature, vibrant blue or pink colours are determined by the acidic soil in the area.
While a majority of gardens in Cornwall celebrate their peak colour season during spring with the beginning of Camellias and Rhododendrans, Trebah is able to host a variety of seasonal plants which keeps the garden looking bright and varied throughout the year.
More unusual forms growing in the garden include Hydrangea quercifolia with its panicles of white flowers and Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle' with its large white pom poms.
