Hurrah for the Lost Gardens of Heligan!

It's a good job my Mum likes gardens - she's been staying for the last few days and all I've done is drag her round gardens and nurseries! 

So off we went again on Saturday, as the weather was a little better and with teenagers in tow, to The Lost Gardens of Heligan. It was Granny's first visit and there is a lot to see in one afternoon, so we decided to concentrate on the Northern gardens area, whilst the teenagers took Dad to the wildlife hide and jungle. This is a great way of doing it, no-one gets bored of walking too slowly and no-one gets worn out by charging around.

It is amazing to think that the Gardens were only rediscovered 20 yrs ago. From the film and photographs the difference is amazing, from a state of... well disrepair really doesn't cover it, there wasn't really anything other than bramble covered rubbish heaps with the the old fallen over building, to what you see below in such a short time (it's taken me 6 years to get my front garden under control). Tim Smit (the man who found the garden) is either a man of enormous vision and drive, or a lunatic who got lucky. I suspect the first and full respect to him for persuading others to see what he saw.

We started off in the Vegetable Garden, where rows of beans and apple arched walkways were interspersed with rows of jolly Zinnias, and the potting shed was a dream!

Then we moved on to the Italian Garden with it's ornamental pool and delicate pale yellow Nasturtiums and ferns.

    

Next was the Sundial Garden with its beautiful sunny borders full of Echinacea, Verbena Bonariensis, and Anemones. Oh, and a pair of boots that definitely needed a clean!

    

    

Finally, via mad Geranium greenhouses and cosy Head Gardener's Office...

    

...we reached the flower garden, which was a riot of Dahlias.

    

    

With Cleome, Orange trees and Vines in the Vinery, it was a lovely place to meet up with the teens.

And their favourite bit of the Gardens - well that would have to be the tree swing next to the Stewards House - that was awesome!

The Lost Gardens of Heligan is a great day out, with formal gardens (as above), a Lost Valley walk, a Jungle Valley with arial walkways full of tropical plants collected by Victorian collectors, a Woodland Walk with green sculptures, lawns, meadows and a fabulous wildlife hide with remote cameras in nest boxes. Lots to do for everyone and definitely worth more than one visit. 

We'll have Granny swinging through the Jungle Valley next visit!