"Puya-tastic News" - updated 14 July 2010
This amazing, beautiful flower was planted about 10 years ago by Rachel Martin, Trebah's Head Gardener at the time. Our current Head Gardener, Darren Dickey identified it with the help of Tom Hart Dyke of Lullingstone Castle & World Garden, as possibly being the 'Puya compacta', and if this is the case then it is polycarpic - which means it does not die after flowering. The Puya compacta originates from Los Paramos in Southern Ecuador. Darren believes it was either sourced from Tresco Abbey Gardens or from Kew. In Tom's words: "This is very, very rare"!
This may be the only chance the visiting public might get to see it flower for many years, potentially another 10 years, as they do not always flower each year. The flower itself may only be in bloom for the next 7 days. This extraordinary sight can be seen on Rachel's Path, please ask at the entrance when visiting the garden for directions.
A rare sight indeed!
"Trebah Wins Committed to Excellence Award"
Trebah Garden has yet again reinforced its credentials as one of Cornwall's leading and highest quality tourism businesses after receiving a Committed to Excellence Award, one of only 4 businesses in the county, and the only tourist attraction, to receive this accolade. The Tourism Business Excellence Programme is a new initiative between the BQF (British Quality Foundation) and TSNSW (Tourism Skills Network South West). Its aim is to promote businesses who refresh their strategic commercial objectives, undertake improvement projects and take part in an intensive self-assessment, with an over-arching emphasis on excellence and quality. The process is over a 7/8 month term and is then validated and assessed by a moderator. Nigel Burnett, Director of Trebah Garden received the award from Maureen McCollough, the recently appointed Head of Tourism at South West Tourism at the Mount Somerset Hotel in Taunton, where the award ceremony took place. Nigel says of the programme: "In these demanding economic times any organisation has to be at the top of its game, innovative, professional and highly customer-focused. The Tourism Business Excellence Programme created a structure and discipline to set about a re-examination of our business, it facilitated links with many like-minded and ambitious businesses across the whole of the south west. Through its funding from the South West Regional Development Agency, it gave businesses like ours, access to some excellent key note speakers of national and international repute. This award validates all the hard work we have been doing here at Trebah and it confirms publicly our commitment to excellence in everything that we do and I would recommend any tourism business in the south west to take advantage of this programme and what it offers". A second phase of courses is intended later this year.
"Trebah Wins Large Gold for Show Garden at County Spring Show"
This weekend Trebah attended the Cornwall Garden Society Spring Flower Show at Boconnoc Estate near Lostwithel. The Cornwall Garden Society (CGS) created the opportunity for gardens to enter a show garden, a new category for 2010.
Trebah decided to enter and formed a partnership with University College Falmouth's BA(Hons) Garden Design course, working with their first year students and course lecturers, Richard Sneesby and Matt James.
Back in March, the students spent a day at Trebah, brainstorming ideas and looking for sources of inspiration for the show garden. The theme 'Take a closer look' came from Trebah's branding and advertising, challenging people to look at Trebah more closely, see it from a different perspective and after visiting the garden take away an experience that proves that Trebah is more than just a garden.
The idea for the show garden was to elevate the whole installation to waist height, allowing people to look into the planting and see up close the detail. The display would also be angled allowing the large tree ferns that were placed into the display through round holes to poke out of the display and allow the tree ferns to spread their fronds (leaves) out like large umbrellas, creating a woodland canopy. Placed amongst the planting were three convex mirrors in various sixes, these reflected the tree fern canopy, again providing the opportunity for the audience to see the canopy from a different perspective. It was also commented on by visitors to the show who saw the garden that the mirrors also worked to denote water, another theme that is synonymous with Trebah, with its water features, ponds, streams and being situated on the Helford River with its own beach.
The show garden won 'Large Gold' and received The Banham Cup from the Society. Nigel Burnett, Director of Trebah Garden said: "This is a phenomenal achievement, the students, Richard, Matt and our team at Trebah have worked incredibly hard to achieve this award and the result is magnificent. We wanted to create a garden that inspired, challenged and intrigued visitors to the show, affording them to re-connect with Trebah and everything that our garden has to offer. The partnership with UCF is an ongoing commitment between Trebah and the students, allowing them to use the site as a 'living classroom' and space for them to work and exhibit".
Trebah Shines at Falmouth Spring Show
On Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th March, the 100th Falmouth Spring Flower Show opened its doors to garden enthusiasts of all ages. This popular local show attracts great enthusiasm as the first of the Cornish Spring Shows. Nicola Wharton, Trebah's Garden Archivist and Dave Tait, Trebah's apprentice gardener went to the Show on Friday 26th March to prepare Trebah's entries to the Show, ready for the judges on Friday evening. Trebah entered 19 classes in total and achieved 1st prize in over 7 categories. Most importantly, Trebah kept the Chamber of Commerce Silver Challenge Cup for 2010, for the most points in the trees and shrubs section. This is the 4th year in a row that Trebah has won this prestigious cup. Trebah also won The Royal Horticultural Society Banksian Medal, for the most points won in the whole of the show, this was a first for the team at Trebah. Nicola Wharton commented on Trebah's success at the show: "The week before the Show, I was really worried that there would be very little flowering in the garden. The difficult winter weather conditions we have experienced over the past couple of months has been extra hard on the fragile blooms of the Camellias. But, in true Trebah fashion we managed to pull through. We are only a very small team here at Trebah with just the 2 of us setting up the show. This is a great achievement for the garden and I am particularly proud to be representing Trebah in the Show's 100th year, it has been a real pleasure". The team at Trebah are now working hard on their display Show Garden for the Cornwall Garden Society Spring Show, which is in partnership with the BA(hons) Garden Design course at University College Falmouth. Working closely with 1st year students and their course tutors Richard Sneesby and Matt James, the theme will be around Spring Woodland planting but with an exciting twist on the traditional show garden. The CGS Show is at Boconnoc on April 10th and 11th.
A Champion Display
This Easter why not spring into action and visit Trebah Garden, nr Falmouth. This photograph was taken last weekend of our magnificent Magnolia campbelli or commonly known as the 'Pink Tulip Tree', with its wonderful rose-pink goblet-shaped blooms which look like water lilies against a clear blue Cornish Sky. Believed by the gardeners at Trebah to be a champion tree - this means that it is arguably the tallest Magnolia in the UK. Darren Dickey, Head Gardener at Trebah is quoted as saying: "My favourite part of the garden in the spring would have to be the Chilean Coomb. The Magnolia campbelli has to be one of the most impressive trees when it is covered in a mass of pink flowers. For those who visit the garden this Easter, the Chilean Coomb now has a wonderful display of around 20,000 daffodils, creating a golden carpet of yellow flowers."
The Wishing Tree Project
In response to Haiti and the work of Shelterbox, three students from Cornwall College studying the Foundation Degree for Fine Art Textiles set up a children's workshop at Trebah on Tuesday 16 February. Children and adults were asked to write and/or draw two wishes, one for themselves and one for the world. These wishes were then hung onto a specially created Wishing Tree.
This is Phase One of a very special community collabrative site-based project that the three students have to complete as part of their degree. Phase Two will incorporate all the wishes that have been made and will be hung inside a specially created Shelter which will be installed and displayed at Trebah on Thursday 18 March.
There is one more chance to add a wish to the Wishing Tree. This is on Thursday 18 February between 11am and 1pm in The Vinery.
Daffodil Dedication
This spring Trebah will see the result of over 150 special daffodil bulbs that have been planted by the Hibbert family in memory of Eira Hibbert, who sadly passed away in March 2009. A collection was made in her memory at her funeral last year and the family decided to use part of the collection to name one of Ron Scamp's new varieties of daffodil. Ron Scamp has been breeding and collecting daffodils for over 35 years and has over 2,000 varieties. When the family visited the nursery, near Falmouth, they could not choose between two particularly stunning flowers and therefore they named: "Trebah Gem", a beautiful pure white daffodil and the other "Eira Hibbert", which is a traditional bright yellow flower.
These bulbs have been planted around a bench on Radiata Path that has been erected and dedicated to Eira Hibbert's memory and should be in flower around the anniversary of her death (13th March).
Trebah Garden has also created an appeal for donations towards the purchase of buying more of these two special varieties with the aim of planting more around the garden.
Chris Hibbert says:
"It is a fitting tribute to my mother who worked tirelessly with my father in the most beautiful garden in Cornwall. The family would like to express their thanks to Ron Scamp for producing such beautiful daffodils and enabling us to buy the bulbs and plant them at Trebah. We hope all those who visit Trebah during the spring will get to see these stunning examples and appreciate the beauty of this simple spring flower".
