The Stumpery

A very Victorian tradition

Stumperies first became popular in the Victorian period; the upside-down tree stumps provided a perfect shady, damp habitat for the hundreds of new fern species being introduced to Britain at the time.

The first stumpery was built at Biddulph Grange, Staffordshire in 1856 and the largest is considered to be HRH Prince Charles’s stumpery at Highgrove.

A landscaping feat

Our stumpery uses stumps and trunks collected from the Rosemoor woodlands and estate. The potential of this previously under-developed space has now been realised, providing new planting opportunities for rare and unusual ferns as well as shade-loving plants.

The garden team used their creativity to place an impressive array of stumps along a winding pathway to form an area full of atmosphere and mystery.

Moving these large stumps was quite a feat of engineering with the use of tractors, forklift trucks, winches, chainsaws - along with plenty of sweat and tears from the garden team!