Garden Diary – Autumn 2025

The brilliant autumn colour of October and November is already a fading memory. We spent those months collecting leaves, cutting back perennials and mulching the borders. A layer of mulch helps enrich the border as it breaks down over the coming year, suppresses weeds, and helps retain moisture — a practice well-adapted to the periods of drought which we have become used to in recent years.

If you make it to the garden, there is winter interest to reward your effort. In a corner of Wychfield, Fatsia japonica and the holly tree Ilex x altaclerensis ‘Camelliifolia’ grow side by side, their respective white flowers and red berries complementing one another. Outside Dean House, one finds x Fatshedera lizei: a hybrid cross between Fatsia japonica and Irish Ivy. Elsewhere, the yellow spires of Mahonia brighten the garden, as does the Prunus x subhirtella ‘Autumnalis’, blossoming within sight of the gardeners’ messroom.

Beyond the garden, the College marked its 675^th birthday in November. Following celebratory tea and cake, Professor Clare Jackson gave a talk on the newly-released book, A Trinity Hall Treasury. The book explores Trinity Hall’s many treasures from across the ages, from the chained library of the 1580s to the WongAvery Music Gallery of 2022. Amidst the artefacts, artwork and architecture, Professor Jackson began her talk by quoting a line from Head Gardener Sam Hartley’s entry in A Trinity Hall Treasury: