Tantalising TREBAH

A subtropical paradise leading to a private bay, Cornwall's Trebah Gardens will delight you

- CHRIS MORLEY

Entering Trebah's luxuriant, steep-sided valley is like stepping into a lost world. Emerging from the morning mist that clings to the valley walls are exotic plants, ancient trees and towering ferns. In fact, the 26-acre garden, which tumbles some 70m down to a private cove on the Helford River, is a few miles from Falmouth.

It was the vision of Charles Fox, a wealthy businessman who bought the land in 1838. Fox ran a shipping business, and was able to import subtropical specimens from Australia and South America, many of which hadn't been grown before in the UK.

Successive owners added to Trebah's rare and diverse plant collections, notably the early 20th-century socialite Alice Hext. A period of neglect followed World War Two, when the beach was used by US troops to embark for the D-Day landings. In the 80s, a programme of restoration was established by Major Hibbert and his wife Eira, who bought Trebah as their retirement home. In 1990, they donated the garden to a charitable trust, to safeguard its dreamlike and diverse landscape for the future.

VALLEY VIEW

Looking up the valley and across Mallard Pond, you takes in a Monet-style bridge and Trebah's whitepainted Georgian house. Once a marshy area at the bottom of the gardens, the pond was designed by former owner Alice Hext, who stocked it with pink flamingos.

MALLARD BRIDGE APPROACH

Colourful perennials paint the edges of the pathways that zigzag through the valley. A vibrant palette made up deep-blue agapanthus, purple loosestrife and maroon-bobbled persicaria hold the eye against a tapestry of greens that fades into the distance.

KOI POND