Parques de Sintra replaces camellias felled by Storm Martinho in the Park of Pena

Parques de Sintra has completed the removal of more than 300 trees of various species that were felled by Storm Martinho in the Park of Pena and has begun the phase of replacing botanical specimens, symbolically marked by the planting of ten Camellia sasanqua specimens in the Fernery of the Countess of Edla, one of the areas most affected by the storm that occurred in March last year.

In the Fernery of the Countess of Edla, the severe weather destroyed dozens of century-old trees, namely two specimens of Sequoia sempervirens, two Abies alba, one Cedrus atlantica and two Cryptomeria japonica. . The fall of these large trees led to the loss of ten Camellia sasanqua belonging to the camellia collection planted in Park of Pena in the second half of the 19th century, which have now been replaced.

The plants damaged by the passage of Storm Martinho were copies of Camellia sasanqua 'Barão de Soutelinho' and Camellia sasanqua 'Baronesa de Soutelinho', two Portuguese cultivars common in the 19th century that also exist in other areas of Park of Pena, which has been distinguished by the International Camellia Society as a Camellia Garden of Excellence. Accordingly, in this action to replace botanical specimens, Parques de Sintra chose to enhance and diversify the collection of this species by engaging a specialist camellia supplier who collects and conserves cultivars.

The following cultivars were added to the camellia collection at Park of Pena, with one specimen of each:

Camellia sasanqua ‘Marie Kirk,’ also known as ‘Autumn Moon;’

Camellia sasanqua ‘Hinode-Gumo,’ which in Japanese means ‘cloud of the rising sun’;

Camellia sasanqua ‘Hiryū;’

Camellia sasanqua Shõwa-Nishiki (Saitama);

Camellia sasanqua ‘Évangéline,’ a French cultivar;

Camellia sasanqua 'Dazzler,’ originating in Japan and East Asia, frequently classified as Camellia hiemalis (botanical synonym);

Camellia sasanqua ‘Weroona,’ a cultivar originating in Australia in 1963;

Camellia sasanqua ‘Farrapinhos Mexicanos,’ a cultivar from Galicia, Spain.

In addition, two specimens of the following were planted:

Camellia sasanqua ‘Gingetsu,’ a cultivar of Japanese origin whose name means ‘silver moon.’

On the night of 19th to 20th March 2025, the passage of Storm Martinho through the Sintra Mountains caused the fall of around 100,000 trees, affecting 280 hectares of the approximately 1,000 hectares under the management of Parques de Sintra, which include the forest perimeter in the area of the Sanctuary of Peninha. This extreme and unprecedented climatic event in the region was particularly destructive due to the exceptional combination of several meteorological factors.

The impact of this storm interrupted the reforestation project at Park of Pena, launched in 2014 with the aim of restoring the atmosphere that existed before the destruction caused by storms in previous years. The work of recovering and enhancing the botanical collection of Portugal’s largest arboretum—which over the course of a decade resulted in the planting of around 7,000 trees—can now be resumed. Following the guiding principles and aesthetic criteria of interventions in 19th-century Romantic parks and gardens, the objective is to preserve this valuable natural heritage for future generations.