Pink with pink

In the foreground are the lower branches of a magnolia which is over 100 years old, with rhododendron blossom behind.

This was at the Lost Gardens of Heligan.  They only recently re-opened, having been closed for two months.  Govt guidelines allowed them to be open, but they took the 'Nanny State' approach and said they had closed because people shouldn't be travelling! (Lots of locals live within 5 miles of Heligan).  Even though other local gardens and beaches were open, and many local people have local's passes, which they couldn't use!  The cynic in me thinks that as there was very little admission money to be made, because of all the locals with locals passes, they would make more money by closing and putting staff on furlough.  Even now they are open, and used to boast that they only closed for one day a year, they now close for two days every week!  So you might suppose that lots of noisy gardening jobs could be done on those 'closed' days.  Heligan used to be a peaceful place, but today it wasn't.  There was the constant noise of a chainsaw going.  Then a noisy smelly engine road roller was being slowly pushed around the paths.  Then an electric hedge trimmer in the vegetable garden with the road roller close by.  Paths closed while they were being worked on.  The route through the back of the sundial garden closed.  Gardeners  and handymen riding around in noisy buggies.  The barn was closed. I wanted to see the blossom in the peach house but it was far down, and the path alongside it was closed!  I know the birds have to be shut away because of avian flu but there were none of the usual  animals around apart from two goats.  All the kids playground places were closed because work was being done on them.


I can't remember this much noise, or closures, at Heligan in pre-Covid times!