Going Bananas in Cornwall, Plus a Harbour and Lots of Heligan Flowers

Going bananas in Cornwall, well not quite but my son has bananas growing in his garden, as can be seen in the photo above.

Another view of his plant.

Actually, the plant looks to be quite a cool dude.

Here's a better photo of the plant - they often look quite scruffy following high winds or heavy rainfall.

Moving on to one of our regular walks in Charlestown. A dog was waiting patiently by one of the cottage gates.

Looking down on some of the ships and boats in dock. This area has a gate to retain the water and there is also a leat to keep it topped up.

Looking west from the Charlestown harbour wall.

As the tide was out it was possible to walk further along the cliffside - carefully!

Looking east at the harbour entrance.  Visiting boats will have to wait for the tide to change.

Moving on now to  the Lost Gardens of Heligan, another of our regular haunts.

Lots of flowers on display as can be seen by the next six photos.

We walked past the Potting Shed but not much potting was going on.

Lots of apples though.

This is the sundial which gives this garden its name - the Sundial Garden.

There is much more to see at the Lost Gardens of Heligan, it stretches over 200 acres. From the gardens its possible to see the sea in the distance.

Below some fungi spotted on an old tree and ...

... shhh! finally the Mud Maid sleeps peacefully.

Thanks for visiting my blog - have an interesting weekend and week ahead ~ Mike.

A Visit to the Lost Gardens of Heligan, Cornwall

Was nearby, so looked in at the Lost Gardens of Heligan. All seemed pretty much at usual. The next couple of photos are from the Sundial Garden.

I always like old brickwork, somehow it reminds me of childhood - yes, I have a good memory!

I've left the flowers behind but I always like to see the animals at Heligan. The sheep were indoors as it was haircut time, they seemed happy enough.

The goats are Golden Guernseys.

Flowers growing wild, always something special about seeing poppies, even if there is only one in the photo.

A mixture of plants.

I came across this old tree. At first I thought it looked as if a horse was looking out at the world, but then I thought there were a couple of small white owls peeking out - just a touch of pareidolia I presume.

A group of tall Echiums, often seen in Cornwall. They will look lovely when in flower. I believe they originally came from the Canary Islands.

And, just in case you need a helping hand there's one at Heligan.

This  art work 'In Nature’s Hands' is by Jasmine Fassenfelt and Rebecca Knight.  The work was put in place on the 12th June 2021, to coincide with the G7 Summit, which took place in Carbis Bay, Cornwall.

Of course I have just touched on a small part of the Lost Gardens of Heligan. There are over 200 acres to explore if you have the energy to do so. Following are a few of the flower gardens with an abundance of flowers. 

There are usually lots of dahlia, but it's a little early for them at the moment. Just the one lonely flower.

The dahlia below is from my own garden, the fist one to bloom - as yet - lots of buds though.

Back to Heligan a cosmos on its own.

There are also fruit and vegetables at Heligan, the photo is part of an archway of apples.

Nearly forgot the next photo, large poppies.

Finally a photo I created on my computer. Hope you have a happy week ahead and thanks for visiting by blog ~ Mike.

The Lost Gardens of Heligan - 30 Photos

The weatherman promised me a bright sunshiny day. I know he didn't mean to lie but ... well, that's what Tammy Wynette used to sing and that's what happened when we booked a time to visit Cornwall's Lost Gardens of Heligan. It was supposed to be sunny but it turned out quite cold with a sharp easterly wind and a colourless sky.

Such is life, but there were some wonderful rhododendrons on display at Heligan, as a consolation. 

Some of the rhododendron are very old. 

One specimen is claimed to be around 170 years old. It is thought to have been part of an 1851 expedition by Joseph Dalton Hooker.

Of course Heligan is not only rhododendrons, there are tulips and much more. 

We decided to head for the Jungle and the Lost Valley.

On our way there were a couple of lakes but nothing to get excited about.

We passed the Witches Hat. Actually it's a sculpture by the Cornish sculptor James Eddy. It is said to represent Growth & Decay.

Bamboo, now that's a bit more exotic, wonder what it is hiding.

A mixture of trees and ferns plus more rhododendrons in the background.

It's all getting a bit more mysterious.

Lots of Gunnera starting to grow now. I've heard some people describe it as giant rhubarb.

From the valley sides there are several places which lead down to small ponds or lakes. 

Here we are by a large pond and fern trees. You might be able to pick out some goldfish.

More water.

Heading into the Jungle's Fern Gulley - 3 photos.

Out of the jungle - more rhododendrons and also camellias.

Once out of the jungle refreshments are available, though it was a bit too chilly for most people to sit outside.

As we carried on walking we noticed the goose had found something of interest ...

... but it all got a bit confusing in the next photo.

The turkey was showing off his favourite finery. Actually there's something about turkeys that give me the collywobbles. Perhaps it's just because I'm vegetarian.

Ah, but the lamb gave me a nice smile. There are usually more farm animals to see.

From the animals we made our way to the Sundial Garden. A few other people had the same idea.

We found a seat and drank some of our coffee supply.

There is an unusual tree in the Sundial Garden - a Handkerchief Tree (Davidia Involucrata).

The tree originates from Szechwan in China and the seed was collected by Ernest Henry "Chinese" Wilson in 1905.

At the right time of the year the ball of small brown flowers flutter delicately in the wind - like silk pocket handkerchiefs.

We decided to make our way home, though there is still much more to see at the Lost Gardens of Heligan - and more rhododendrons.

All in all an interesting visit, even though we have visited Heligan many, many times.

See also Lost Gardens of Heligan - Voted UK's Top Visitor Garden.