2025 – CHW
Some excellent newer magnolias at the far end of Kennel Close.
From the same cross as Magnolia ‘Leonora’ – different to ‘Leonora’ but also very good.





2024 – CHW
The review of younger newer magnolias continues (now in Area 24).
This is Magnolia ‘Atlas’ x M. ‘Vulcan’ planted in 2013. Lunaplant (today) call a cross by this name Magnolia ‘Nelly’ which looks much the same.







A cold night and a few magnolias below Kitchen Garden have caught the frost high up. Still remarkably dry for the time of the year.Magnolia ‘Caerhays Belle’ is starting to open by the arch.
2022 – CHW
More piles of new plants to be placed out and planted soon.


Driving through Carnon Downs I stopped to photograph two large Camellia x williamsii ‘Donation’ which had been kept clipped into rounded balls. This might strike you as an odd way to treat a camellia particularly as you would be clipping out most of its potential to flower. However, as you see here, the flowers that do emerge within the sphere open flat and are really rather an effective display. A very pale flowering form of ‘Donation’ but none the worse for that. The house has changed hands a couple of times over the years, but the clipping has continued. I wonder if this would work as well with other varieties? An interesting idea for any grower with the time to experiment.



Nothing about raw sewage effluent today – back to flowers!We always get angry at people who leave the garden saying ‘the primroses were lovely’. This implies they never went into the garden at all or saw a magnolia, camellia etc. However, outside the front door on the bank, they are lovely! Lots of interbreeding from the cultivated forms in the former borders over the years so white, pinkish-mauve and red ones with some primula characteristics in amongst them. Look up as you go around the garden as Dad always said!



A day of firsts!Our first flowering of Rehderodendron indochinense which was bought from Crug Farm nursery about four years ago. It was 6ft tall on arrival and is now twice this.
Off to Heligan with the Canadians for a rapid fire tour. Much evidence of box blight in one of the walled gardens. These problems will be useful to Julie for my recent care article about edging and hedging plants to grow and use as an alternative to diseased box. Despite the sign I do not think it will actually recover from the disease even though cut back.
Another day for the magnolias to do the talking on their own.Another plant of Magnolia campbellii ‘Darjeeling’ on the Hovel Cart Road in strong wind. Exquisite colour which has faded a bit since yesterday.



Clematis armandii ‘Apple Blossom’ is now a huge plant below the greenhouse which has enveloped and killed an old camellia here. The one on the front of the house is white.Rhododendron ‘Endsleigh Pink’ is starting to show in the Auklandii Garden and on Burns Bank. About on time as this is always early and a good hardy hybrid which will propagate from cuttings.
2015 – CHW

The Four Burrow Hunt meet on the beach; hounds and lady master late as usual, so plenty of time to admire the view of the garden. Rhododendron delavayi above the quarry stands out proud but is clearly nearing the end of its life. Stupidly I called it Magnolia barclayi during Jim Gardiner’s visit on Monday but he kindly and very gently reminded me I was wrong 100 yards further down the path under Burns Bank.
1995 – FJW
Frost has not done great harm yet – still very wet.1966 – FJW
George Blandfords 80th birthday and still going very strong indeed.1962 – FJW
Very savage south easterly gale – very bad 10 days for the garden – on this day Penzance and Newlyn very badly damaged.
1933 – JCW
No Magnolia shows a flower as far as I can see. Camellia japonica is flowering, a fine crop of flowers with most of them.
1931 – JCW
What may well be a long hard frost set in yesterday on the top of a fine lot of early Rhodo’s in the new planting.
1919 – JCW
Argenteums are opening, lutescens is nice, fargesii good, some of the blood red hybrids are very good indeed. Daffodils are behind 1913 a very long way.
1913 – JCW
Many daffodils open but no poets yet. Rho praecox going back, some Rho argenteum open, some going back.