Cornish Plants

If you love Cornwall (of course you do) then you may want to buy some Cornish plants to take home for your own garden, recreating a little Cornish magic. Their suitability depends on the climate where you live – remember Cornwall is pretty mild, so trying to grow a big-headed jaw-droppingly beautiful blue perennial agapanthus somewhere cooler may be a challenge. The seed heads, when sprayed gold/silver, do make fabulous Christmas decorations though.

You will see camellias blooming beautifully in many parts of Cornwall. They are not local but have become a permanent fixture of historic houses/gardens due to their ability to thrive in the mild climate.

For a Cornish plant, look out for Vigur’s eyebright, white flowers with a spot of yellow and lobed petals, which may only be found here. Here is a lovely list of plants you are likely to find walking in Cornwall. Ones to try growing at home include those lovely spiky echium and funky protea, but they like some warmth.

The Barefoot Cornwall blog has a now aged but very useful post on recreating a Cornish garden. It mentions Rosemary which thrives here. Its scent is gorgeous and it is useful for cooking. Verbena looks sweet and delicate but is quite hardy and beloved by bees, birds and butterflies. The Cornish Daisy will grow almost anywhere (beware, it spreads) but looks especially lovely in garden wall crevices.

But don’t take our word for it. If you are a gardener, visit Cornwall’s gardens for ideas – they also tend to have garden shops where you can buy exactly what you need. Recommended are Trebah Garden near Falmouth, the Lost Gardens of Heligan at St Austell, the Eden Project, Trerice near Newquay, Trelissick near Truro, and Lanhydrock near Bodmin.