On the west coast south of Oban lies one of Scotland’s most beautiful gardens: Arduaine Garden. A visit to a plant paradise.
A good 35 kilometres south of Oban, Scotland’s west coast bulges out a little. The small headland reaches out towards a few islands, and in the far distance you can make out the peaks of the mountains of Jura. A dreamlike spot — a view shared by James Arthur and Ethyl Campbell.
The couple bought the land in 1897. But however alluring the view, the soil was hard, the wind strong, and the rain plentiful. Even so, the couple pulled off a small miracle that visitors can still marvel at today: Arduaine Garden.
The winding gravel paths, steps and hidden trails don’t just lead through a garden but through the vegetation of several continents. That’s precisely where the “plant hunters” gathered the seeds and saplings that they then planted here in sheltered zones, later tended by gardeners and now bursting into bloom.
Arduaine Garden boasts around 2,000 species from all over the world, including hyacinths, rhododendrons, magnolias, azaleas and many other fascinating plants. Groves of exotic (and by now ancient) trees offer shelter from wind and rain. Ferns and mosses grow beneath and upon the trees.
“Arduaine” comes from the Gaelic “àrd uaine” – “green height”. There’s already been plenty said here about the green, but where’s the height? In fact, one of the paths leads up through the woods. And with height come viewpoints too — over the sea, for instance: views across Loch Melfort, the Firth of Lorn, and out to the Slate Islands.
The second viewpoint sits right by the old oak, which stood here long before the garden did. From here, visitors get a wonderful view over the sea of plants.
Of course, the Campbells didn’t just create a kind of wilderness here. After all, they also wanted to live and enjoy life here. So they laid out paths, little cottages, pergolas and small ponds.
At least the Campbells were able to enjoy their good fortune here for nearly 30 years. After their deaths, the estate passed down through the family twice more before it was eventually sold. Fortunately, the Wright brothers bought the gardens in the 1970s and donated them to the National Trust for Scotland in 1992. The NTS has looked after Arduaine Gardens ever since — sometimes with sad consequences …
Know: The lost Japanese larches of Arduaine Garden
In 2019, the garden suffered a painful loss. Many of the Japanese larches, some as old as 120 years, which formed part of the woodland, had become infected with a dangerous fungus: Phytophthora ramorum, or “sudden oak death”. To stop this fungus from spreading to other trees (the oaks, for instance) or gaining any further foothold in Scotland, the affected and surrounding trees had to be felled and destroyed on site.
Getting there:
With sat nav: “PA34 4XQ” will take you onto the right road and close to the garden.
Without sat nav: Arduaine Garden lies between Oban and Lochgilphead (on the way to Kilmartin and the ferry to Islay). So it’s enough to take the A816 in either direction, towards Oban or Lochgilphead, and watch for the brown sign pointing to the gardens. There’s ample parking around the hotel.
