Trebah Garden

Trebah is a 26-acre subtropical ravine garden that tumbles down to a private beach on the Helford River. The scale is extraordinary — giant tree ferns from New Zealand, huge Gunnera plants with leaves big enough to shelter under, bamboo groves, hydrangea drifts in summer, and a canopy of towering trees overhead. It feels more like a tropical valley than a Cornish garden. The garden descends steeply through different zones — the rhododendron collection at the top gives way to the subtropical planting in the valley, then opens out to the beach at the bottom. The beach itself is a little-known gem — a sandy cove on the Helford River, surprisingly warm and sheltered. During WWII, 7,500 American soldiers departed from this beach for the D-Day landings at Omaha Beach. The planting changes dramatically through the seasons — camellias and magnolias in spring, hydrangeas in summer, autumn colour, and the structural beauty of bare branches in winter. The café does good food. Allow 2-3 hours for a thorough visit, longer if you want to swim from the beach. One of the finest gardens in Cornwall, and generally quieter than Heligan or the Eden Project.