Saturday, 4 July 2009

Queen Mary Gardens, Gyllyngvase, Falmouth.

These gardens are right by the beach at Gyllyngvase and were opened in 1912 to commemorate the coronation of Queen Mary who was the wife of George V. DSCF0086There are lots of tropical plants and masses of Gunnera (hope I’ve got the spelling right). Click on all pictures to enlarge!

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I can remember playing in the gardens as a child and running and hiding in the Gunnera was the best thing ever! The gardens are laid out quite formally with beds and sweeps of lawn. Some of the plants are quite spectacular. I have to admit right now that I am bad on the names of plants! So I will just insert the pictures and leave you to guess! Well some things I know!

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I love these red hot pokers.DSCF0091

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I think these are Proteas but I could be wrong!

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The Agapanthas weren’t quite out yet but when they are they will make a magnificent statement as there were masses of them.

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These Monterey Pines at the edge of the car park were planted by the Victorians and there are lots of them in this part of Cornwall. Sadly being over a hundred years old a lot of them are rotten and are being cut down. What was once a familiar sight is now being lost and none have been planted in the past to take their place.

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This is looking across the end of the gardens to the beach and the sea. There are often large ships in the bay as the entrance to Falmouth harbour is to the left of this picture. When I was a child there were beach huts on the beach in semi-circles along the back of the sand. There were five circles in all but now it is just bare sand.

6 comments:

  1. Bearded proteas,because of that brown fringe around the petals. Beard is not the greatest word for these flowers, but that is what they are called. Can't see which sp. They do look happily at home with our red hot pokers and agapanthus. SA plants are obviously flourishing in Cornwall!

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  2. Hi Valeri - there's some very lush planting there :)

    Do you mind if I link to this as part of my Out on the Streets roundup post?

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  3. Had to look at this post thank you Valeri. Actually I prefer the garden by the college I forget the name. You didn't give me a glimpse of the beach. So much nicer not to have beach huts and something I like is that the properties are in nice proportion to their surroundings and not great tall buildings which spoil most seaside places around the world.
    Once we had a boat trip to the Helford estuary and looking back towards Gyllingvase beach you could see a cruise ship in the harbour, because the land dips before the headland it looked as if the ship was sat on the land most amusing site.
    Wonderful place Falmouth for anyone who has never been it is a must visit if you are in Cornwall.

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    1. Fox Rosehill Gardens......love it too ! : )

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  4. Fond memories of Falmouth come back to me reading this post. The climate must be so mild there, I can't believe your tender plants survived even last winter. All of ours were killed last year, reminding us that we aren't in a sub-tropical zone!

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  5. Hi Valeri, I'm just back from this year's Cornwall holiday. (It was bliss). We stayed in Falmouth for the first time and what a lovely place it is. We walked along to Gyllingvase beach, enjoyed a coffee or two at the very pleasant cafe there and strolled around St Mary's Park. What a beautifully kept park it is too. As you say the Gunneras are fantastic, and there are masses of them. Just the place to sit and enjoy the view and read a book. (or as I also saw run around with a water pistol and enjoy a water fight - fab).
    Gill

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