The Lost Gardens of Heligan

Heligan Gardens is the largest garden restoration project in Europe. Once belonging to a large country house, the former Victorian estate fell into disuse when workers could not be found at the end of the First World War.

The walled kitchen gardens grow all sorts of fruit, vegetables and flowers. Even the old Pineapple Pit has been brought back to life - it creates warmth for the fruit to grow and ripen from a bed of rotting manure!

The Jungle Garden is a walk through sub-tropical trees, alongside a series of small lakes, along boardwalks. Sometimes it is tempting to wonder what stange creature might lurk around the next corner!

The Lost Valley is the latest section to be restored and is a beautiful walk through woodlands.

Glendurgan

Glendurgan, owned by the National Trust, is on the Helford River and affords suberb views of the river and the Fal estuary beyond.

The shipping baron who owned the land, landscaped his garden to compete with Trebah just a little further along the river. Alfred Fox used his shipping business to bring many exotic plants back to Glendurgan and the now mature plants and trees are a marvel to behold. The maze however is another story!

Eden project

The huge biomes are situated at the bottom of a former china clay quarry and provide two very different climates.

The Tropical Biome houses plants and trees from many hot countries - here they grow very quickly and show some of the variety of products in our lives that come from plants. Chocolate, bananas, spices, rubber, chewing gum, rice all begin this way.

The Temperate Biome is like the Mediterranean or some of the cooler desserts such as those found in South Africa or South America. In the winter, temperatures fall close to freezing but the summers can be dry as well as hot. Citrus fruits, vegetables, olives and cork all come from this climate.

Trevarno

These delightful gardens and estate can trace their origins back to 1245! In 1874 the property was purchased by The Bickford-Smith family whose ancestor William Bickford created the miner's safety fuse.

120 years later the Estate was up for sale for the first time and split into several lots but a company looking for a head office with grounds viewed the house. The director was immediately taken in by the beauty and so bought all 33 lots! In the time since 1994 the grounds have been restored and brought back to their former glory. There is a working farm which produces goods for visitors. The ethos at Trevarno is to be self sustained like the estate would have been back in 1874. Even the souvenirs are made on the estate.

This is a splendid day out and the visitor will not be disappointed. Italian Gardens, bluebell woods and peacocks will come to mind, but probably the the Victorian Boat House and the lake and those colourful rhododendrons reflected in the water will put a smile on any face and have you wishing to return.