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The Gardens Parish of Mawnan

Carwinion

The house was built at the end of the 18th century and added to in the 1840s. It was at this time that the garden started to be developed. The Rogers family together with their cousins, the Fox's of Glendurgan, collaborated to bring in rare plants.

The very fine specimens of Dicksonia Antartica and Cryptomaria Japonica are most likely to date from this time. The few bamboo originally in the garden were introduced at the beginning of the 20th century. Anthony Rogers has spent 30 years restoring and replanting Carwinion which became the property of the National Trust in 1969. Below is a poem written by a cousin of Anthony's which sums up Carwinion Garden admirably!

Monday 25th August 2008

Miracle Theatre
presents

JASON

at 7.30 pm

WILD GARDENING

Within this plot you may observe
Tis Nature's balance we conserve
For who are we to specify
Which plants may live and which must die?
And if the weeds seem thick and rank
Then Natures bounty we must thank
Nor think with over tidy mind
"The gardeners here must all be blind"
The least disorder in the beds
Is something that the gardener dreads:
But personally we prefer
Those chance effects which may occur
When nature in her carefree way
Hangs some graceful flowering spray
Across the path - exactly where
It gets into the gardener's hair!

BAMBOOS

To some the idea of planting bamboo in their garden is not to be contemplated. The words 'rampant and invasive' spring to mind, possibility of upsetting the drains, the house foundations and neighbours is a put off. There are of course some very energetic types of bamboo, as there are of some other plants-rhododendron Ponticum, willows and poplars to name but a few. Luckily for the Bamboo enthusiast there are many very spectacular and well-behaved varieties, which add an exotic touch to any garden.
Carwinion in Mawnan Smith is home of one of the finest collections of Bamboo in the country. There are currently over 140 different varieties in this 12-acre valley garden. They range in height from 4 inches to 30+feet. The former, Pleioblastus Owatarii, lives in a pot to keep it out of the way of the strimmer, and the big ones stand majestically on the edge of ponds or in the bottom of the valley.
The collection was started some 12 years ago by Anthony Rogers, who getting discouraged trying to remember the names of the many camellias in the garden, thought he would like to try something different. The then president of the Bamboo Society decided to disperse his collection so Anthony leaped at the chance/ It is a mystery why he should find Schizostachyrus Funghomii or Hibano-Bambusa Tranquilans 'Shiroshima'easy to remember or pronounce, but his very fine collection is a feast for the expert and novice.
The garden was host to almost 200 European and American members of the European Bamboo Society in August 2000, and as well as the resident bamboo some very fine sculptures and artefacts were greatly admired, the piece de resistence being a magnificent wheel 15 meters high which was erected in the middle of the lawn in front of the house.

The difference between the species of bamboo is amazing. The solid culms of the Chusqueas from Chile, the fine golden stems of the Phylostachys Bambusoides Catillonis with a green stripe up alternate sides, the mountain varieties with their tiny leaves and delicate arching habit and the pride of the garden, Drepanostachyum Damarapa Hookeriana with its new growth a brilliant crimson striped with green and yellow. Then there are the more invasive ones, Chimonobambusa Quadrangulis with its square stems, Plieblastus Distchus- a real thug in the garden but looks good in a pot-and Indocalamus Solidus. The curious thing is that a close relation to the last named, Indocalamus Tesselatus, is remarkably well behaved!
At Carwinion there are about 140 different varieties and enough space in its 12 acres to show themselves to good effect.

CAMELLIAS & OTHERS

Sheltering in a Cornish valley looking towards The Lizard is the twelve-acre habitat of over a hundred and sixty different varieties of Bamboo, one of the finest collections of this species in the United Kingdom.
The gardens are in their natural state, with wild flowers, primroses and bluebells.
The Camellias first blossom early in January as the climate is so mild.

Later in the Spring the impact of colour, the fragrances of the Azaleas and the continuing blooming of the Camellias provides a sensual experience not to be missed. The Bamboo collection includes examples of dwarf varieties as well as Phyllostachis Pubescens used in the Far East for scaffolding poles.
There is an area covered by Gunnera Manicata, the leaves of which can grow up to a diameter of four metres. One example of shrub Drimys Winteri is reputed to be the largest in the Country. At the bottom of the valley the garden also boasts specimens of Tasmanian Cedar, Athrotaxis and Cryptomeria Japonica.
Unusual in England are the tree ferns, natives of Australasia, Particularly Dicksonia Antarctica from New Zealand; some of these are now over a hundred years old. A fern and Hellebore garden is now established in an old quarry,as well as a Japanese and a 'Secret' garden.

Various specimens of Bamboo are for sale. Also sales of other special plants grown in the garden.

In the Summer, traditional Cornish Cream teas are served on the terrace. By arrangement visitors may stay in the house, which has been the home of the Rogers for 200 years.

Telephone: 01326 - 250258

FAX: 01326 - 250903

e-mail us

Visit our website at www.carwinion.co.uk

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