Cornwall's Houses and Gardens

The landscaping of the garden at Trengwainton is attributed to Sir Rose Price who made his fortune from sugar planting in Jamaica. He planted conifers with elm, oak, ash and beech; dug three pools and created the nine walled gardens that remain a feature today.

The estate was bought by Thomas Bolitho and the garden was developed in the 1920s with seeds sent by Frank Kingdon Wards expedition to Assam and Burma. In the 1950s a stream garden was planted with meconopsis, skunk cabbage and other bog plants. The estate was donated to the National Trust in the 1960s and offers wonderful views across Mount’s Bay to the Lizard.

The Elizabethan house at Trerice was built for Sir John Arundell in about 1570 on the site of a former Domesday manor. The gardens you see today are the work of the National Trust who took possession of the house in 1953. The forecourt was turfed and planted with borders in 1969 and what was a Dutch Garden to the south was planted with herbaceous borders and an orchard in 1972.

Tresco Abbey Gardens are unique in the British Isles due to the display of exotic and tender plants which is made possible by the temperate climate and the planting of pine trees to deflect the chilling winds.

Augustus Smith built his house overlooking the Abbey ruins in 1838 and the work on his garden started immediately he planted collections of pelargoniums and mesembryanthemums with over 50 species of each and later he obtained plants from around the world. At the time of his death in 1872 the substantial form of his garden is what can be seen today.

His nephew Thomas Smith enhanced and extended the plantings. His son Arthur again widened the range of plants from his contacts in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa with grevillias and callistemons from the antipodes and proteas and leucanthemums from South Africa.

The present house at Trevarno was remodeled in 1839 by Christopher Popham who built the walled garden and a conservatory backed by a gothic folly cottage. He was also responsible for the creation of a yew tunnel walk of some 50 metres.

The estate was bought in 1874 by William Bickford Smith who extended the lake added the neo Gothic boathouse and created formal lakeside terraces with rose gardens, herbaceous borders and gravel walks. Along the main drive a pinetum was planted with over 100 specimens.

In recent years restoration of the walled garden continues to entice visitors. A woodland adventure play area has been introduced as well as a 2km estate walk. Trevarno also houses the National Museum of Gardening a fascinating collection of garden antiques and horticultural memorabilia.

Thomas Hawkins was responsible for the major planting at Trewithen in the 18th century when the house was enlarged for him. The estate came into the hands of George Johnstone in 1904 when the garden really had its Golden Age. He planted 100 hybrids of rhododendron and reshaped and planted the lawn which is one of the outstanding features of the garden today.

The garden is renowned for its collection of rare and tender plants its walled garden and rock pit a former quarry and now a rock garden. Platforms have recently been constructed for viewing the garden and champion trees.