Arduaine Garden is well known in international rhododendron circles for the number of wonderful species grown here. Our collection is extensive, containing close to 400 distinct species of differing sizes with a variety of foliage shapes and an astonishing range of colour and form. This is one of the best rhododendron collections in Britain, featuring many species originally collected by early 20th-century plant hunters such as George Forrest and Frank Kingdon-Ward.
There is one particularly special plant, which ties Arduaine with the garden at Inverewe: the Rhododendron arboreum subsp. zeylanicum. This is by far and away the most important rhododendron in the garden, and is native to Sri Lanka. It was the actual one gifted to James Arthur Campbell from Osgood Mackenzie, the founder of Inverewe Garden, in the 1910s. It is currently well supported by a few struts but continues to do well. We’ve got three other plants that have been propagated from this original one within the garden.
As you turn around from the arboreum, you get a sense of how the garden was actually designed: it’s very much a garden of immersion and enclosure. Nearby is another magnificent specimen: a Rhododendron barbatum with its multiple, plum-red stems. This plant originates from the eastern Himalayas and is a favourite for visitors to walk under on their way to the viewpoint.
The climate is crucial to the success of the rhododendrons at Arduaine. Tender maddenias do well here but would struggle at Crarae. From the enormous leaves of R. sinogrande from China to the blood-red flowers of R. arboreum subsp. nilagiricum from India, a delightful surprise awaits around every corner.
