National Trust garden project to help adapt to climate change

The National Trust is to take on the challenge of climate adaption with a new garden project in East Sussex.

It will be built in the Grade I listed garden at Sheffield Park and Garden.

The development will experiment with planting and "adapt and innovate" as it addresses climate challenges, the trust said.

"Horticulture is just one big experiment and I feel that we're leading the way," said Jodie Hilton, the park's senior gardener.

It will be the first time a new area of the 120-acre gardens has been created since the National Trust took over ownership in 1954.

Members of The Royal Oak Foundation, the trust's partner in the United States, have donated money to cover some of the project's cost.

It has also been made possible in part by a gift left in a will for the benefit of Sheffield Park.

Hove-based landscape designer and two-time winner of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show Joe Perkins has also been brought in to design the garden.

"As much as it's about trying to provide visitors with a new and exciting experience, it's also about experimentation and learning ourselves," he said.

"Some of the plants will do well and others may not, but it's about trying to find new plants, new ways of planting, and discovering what will work for the future," Mr Perkins added.

The new garden will include a monkey puzzle tree from South America, Wollemi Pines and Eucalyptus from Australia, mayten trees from Chile and other plants from around the world.

At the centre of the garden will be a seating around a 300-year-old oak tree.

Ms Hilton added: "For me, what's really exciting is the science behind it because we're putting so much work into assessing our collection and putting in the research."

The new area of the park is expected to open in spring 2025.

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