China, Taiwan, Nepal, Bhutan and Sikkim
Howick Hall Arboretum
A united nations of trees & shrubs
Howick Hall Arboretum opened on 1st April 2006, with a formal opening by Roy Lancaster on 29th April. Covering about 65 acres the Howick Hall Arboretum has almost virtually been grown from seed collected in the wild since 1985. consequently there are about 11,000 trees and shrubs from about 1,800 taxa planted in six geographical groups:-
It is divided into two sections, the West Arboretum, which is the smaller and adjacent to the gardens, and The East Arboretum, which is much larger and not suitable for wheelchairs, being too hilly. Some of the West Arboretum is better for wheelchairs but only for energetic pushers. Which is due to the fact that most of the smaller paths are mown grass and can get sticky in wet weather.
The East Arboretum has three recommended routes. A short, medium and long walk, each marked by coloured arrows. Furthermore you will be issued a FREE leaflet which contains maps of both the West and East Arboretums. Both have numbered marker posts linked to the maps to help you find your way around, which we think are less intrusive than lots of signposts.
Plant Identification
About two thirds of the plants have labels, which show the botanic name and family, the common name (if there is one), the collection number, the province and country where it was collected (not the full geographic range), with a full explanation in the well illustrated brochure, and, for our own purposes, the accession and internal map reference numbers. We intend to add more labels once plants are identified.
Seed Collecting Expeditions
Most of our seed collecting expeditions have been made in conjunction with Quarryhill Botanical Garden in California. Furthermore many of those expeditions to China and Japan have been led by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Royal Botanical Garden Edinburgh. Where relevant, all have been hosted by an authorised institution in the country concerned, and collections are made conforming to CBD and CITES. In addition we have a full computerised database which is available online at howickarboretum.org. Seedlings are exchanged with botanic gardens, arboreta, and gardens open to the public in the UK, while seed is exchanged with many international botanic gardens throughout the world.
Howick Hall Arboretum holds one of the largest collections of wild origin plants in the U.K., but it is of course young. Part of the fun will be watching it grow and develop over the years, giving an increasingly diverse habitat to all forms of wildlife. We are one of the last remaining outposts of the red squirrel in England and you may well see some on your visit.
Come and see it! It will give you an unrivalled opportunity in the North East to see the flora of different countries, with a strong emphasis on China and Japan.