Head Gardener’s Notes: May 2026
First published 27th May, 2026By Ben Barker, Head Gardener
We welcomed the International Dendrology Society to Bute Park this month for a long-awaited tour of the park’s arboretum. Featuring several Champion Trees, the fantastic collection here was enjoyed by staff and society members alike, and it was both a privilege and education to be involved with the visit. You can read more here.
On the Visitor Centre border, we’ve been deadheading Euphorbia characias subsp. Wulfenii. We have also added some new plants for structural interest:
- Viburnum plicatum tomentosum ‘Kilimanjaro Sunrise’
- Philadelphus ‘Belle Etoile’
- Exochorda x macrantha ‘Niagara’.
The Geum ‘Lady Stratheden’ has exploded into life and draws the eye from afar.
Meanwhile our regular gardening volunteers have been hard at work on their Wednesday morning sessions, helping to keep annual weeds down on the herbaceous border and removing the spent spring bedding from the Stuttgart Garden.
Look out for:
Euphorbia mellifera – the Canary spurge – is looking magnificent in flower outside of the Visitor Centre. On a sunny day the scent of honey drifts the length of the border and is a magnet for all sorts of beneficial insects.
