As the effects of climate change reshape the world’s landscapes, gardens across the United Kingdom are transforming to endure new weather extremes. The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) reports that certain fruit trees like figs and almonds are thriving thanks to milder conditions and fewer frosty days. However, unpredictable swings between record rainfall and drought pose challenges for many beloved garden plants and compel horticulturists to rethink traditional designs.
Fewer Frosts Favor Mediterranean Fruits
A notable shift in the UK’s climate has been a marked decline in the number of frosty days each year. According to data from the Met Office, the 2011-2020 decade saw 14% fewer ground frost days compared to the 1981-2010 average. This trend has enabled frost-sensitive fruit trees from warmer regions to flourish in British soils.
Mediterranean migrants like fig and almond trees are among the key beneficiaries of the UK’s warming temperatures. Almond trees planted at RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey produced an abundant fruit harvest for the first time, while fig trees, typically confined to sheltered microclimates, are now being grown openly for the first time at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex.
Tim Upson, Director of Horticulture at the RHS, noted that “instances of air and ground frost are in decline” across RHS gardens, providing boom years for warmth-loving plants. However, he cautioned that unexpected frosts still occasionally wipe out less hardy species like sun-loving hebes, underscoring the complex and often contradictory changes in Britain’s weather patterns.
Torrential Rains Test Garden Designs
While many plants have benefited from milder winters, intensifying rainfall has emerged as a formidable challenge for UK gardeners. 2024 brought record-breaking downpours and flooding to many parts of the country, compelling the RHS to adapt its garden layouts to avoid waterlogging.
At RHS Garden Harlow Carr in North Yorkshire, landscape designers have constructed new attenuation pools and leaky dams to control excess rainwater runoff from the steeply sloping site. Aquatic plants play a vital role in soaking up overflows and slowing the surge into local waterways to prevent flooding.
Similar solutions are being implemented at other RHS sites like Wisley, where a vast new lake has been excavated to harvest rainwater for use during droughts. With a total capacity equivalent to 42,000 household water butts, this reservoir will help to make the gardens more resilient to future dry spells while alleviating flood risks.
What’s important is that we don’t replace like-for-like but continuously build our knowledge so that what we plant next is more likely to survive the contradictions in weather we’re set to see.
– Tim Upson, RHS Director of Horticulture
Designing Gardens for a Changing Climate
Looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, the RHS plans to incorporate even more weather-resistant features into its flagship gardens. These adaptations will serve as models for amateur and professional gardeners across Britain to create landscapes that can withstand climatic extremes:
- Rain gardens will be designed to channel and store excess rainfall within the soil profile, helping to prevent runoff and erosion.
- A new seasonally waterlogged garden at Wisley will trial bog-loving plants that can endure persistently saturated conditions.
- Horticulturists are identifying and propagating hardy plant species that have proven to be resilient survivors of recent weather challenges.
- Retiring less adaptable plants in favor of drought-tolerant and flood-resistant varieties will help future-proof garden designs.
As Upson emphasized, “experimentation and adaptation” will be the guiding principles as British gardeners navigate a rapidly changing climate. By embracing resilient plant selections, water-sensitive design, and a flexible approach to landscaping, the nation’s gardens can continue to thrive in the face of uncertainty.
