Gardeners rise to the challenge as heatwaves impact ‘magnificent’ World Heritage Site water garden

Removing pond weed is a typical summer job for the charity’s gardeners that care for the site, but this year’s repeated heatwaves have made it a weekly task. Dressed in waterproofs, the team wade in to remove around two tonnes of pond weed each week to help ensure the Georgian ponds can continue to be enjoyed as intended. Their calm, mirror-like reflections have been an attraction for visitors since they were created in the 1700s; UNESCO describes the site as “one of the most magnificent Georgian water gardens ever created”.

The weed is carefully removed by hand to minimise disturbance to pond life, then left for up to 48 hours, giving insects such as dragonfly larvae and aquatic creatures like frogs and newts time to make their way back into the water before it is removed.

Justin Scully, General Manager at Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal said: "Pond weed has increased significantly over the last couple of summers, to the point where its removal has become a weekly task just to keep on top of it. The ponds in the Water Garden are quite shallow, so during periods of hot weather they warm up quickly. These higher temperatures encourage rapid pond weed growth, which can lead to the thick blanket weed seen on the surface.

“The garden’s creators couldn’t have imagined the challenges that climate change is bringing us. But as custodians, our job is to safeguard this beautiful place so that people can keep enjoying it, just as they have for more than 250 years.”

The cascades dotted through Studley Royal Water Garden have also slowed to a trickle because of the prolonged hot, dry weather.

Justin continued: “But in winter, due to the impact of more extreme rainfall, water rushes over the cascades, which can result in flooding. These ‘feast or famine’ conditions are why our Skell Valley Project – a £2.5m scheme led by the National Trust and Nidderdale National Landscape to look at ways of addressing the flood risk – was so important. It has helped protect the abbey and other heritage features from the threat of flooding and helped make them more resilient.”

"We're continually adapting to the impacts of climate change on this special place. While the water levels may be low, the site still looks beautiful - a credit to the remarkable design of the historic Water Garden, and to our teams who care for it today."

In early July, another – more welcome – plant took advantage of the heat, with hundreds of pink common orchids appearing for the first time around the historic ruins and riverbanks.

Archaeologist Mark Newman thinks that Victorian or 18^th-century ground works moved topsoil from the riverbank into the large abbey refectory. Orchid seeds within that topsoil may have sat dormant within the ruins before this summer’s high temperatures triggered them into bloom.

Mark Newman, National Trust archaeologist and author of Wonder of the North, Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal, said:

“We know that the ground within the abbey has been changed over centuries through excavation, landscaping and natural processes. These changes could help explain why the orchids have appeared in particular places, but we can’t be certain. That’s what makes Fountains Abbey so compelling – there are still discoveries waiting to be made.”