SPOTLIGHT ON: TREGOTHNAN ESTATE

Hello Bella, thank you for joining us on the McQueens journal. We’re very excited to be working with Tregothnan, can you introduce the estate to our readers?

Tregothnan Estate is home to the Boscawen family and is a living and working private Cornish estate with a rich history dating back to 1334. The name ‘Tregothnan’ literally means ‘The House at the Head of the Valley’ and is still a private family home today. Tregothnan has the largest historic, botanic garden in Cornwall. Its character was formed by the sixth Viscount Falmouth and his brother - the rector of nearby Lamorran who bought Rhododendrons, rare trees, shrubs and ornamental Camellias into the arboretum two hundred years ago.

Tregothnan has persevered in pioneering botanical firsts, using our expertise to nurture rare plants, shrubs and Camellia sinensis (tea plants) within our unique micro-climate. Eight miles from the coast with the deep sea creek of the Fal Estuary running through the estate, the warm and wet conditions are perfect for our thriving tea plantations, which allows us to grow and produce the most British tea in history. Tregothnan began supplying Britain’s first homegrown tea in 2005, creating the ultimate Britishness in every cup. The world’s first true British tea has been heralded as the ‘new Darjeeling.’

Hidden behind the iconic kitchen garden door - the oldest remaining part of the estate dating back to the Plantagenet era - you can find our Camellia sinensis plantations from which we hand-pluck the leaves at dawn. As well as growing English tea and a vast range of plants that create the delicious herbal infusions, a diversity of lands also allows us to produce Cornish Manuka and wildflower honeys, our fine and rare Kea plum jam and sustainable coppiced charcoal. Beautiful British flowers from the Tregothnan estate and surrounding lands are cut for our range of hand-tied seasonal English bouquets.

Tell us a little more about the area of Truro, the estate is set in?

Tregothnan is four miles off the beaten track from a little town called Tresillian, about 15 minutes from Truro. Tresillian is on the edge of the Roseland Peninsula of Cornwall which is bordered by the winding Fal Estuary. The Roseland is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with wonderful coastal scenery, secluded inlets, calm waters and meandering waterways. A lush landscape of rolling hills leading straight into the water plays host to Tregothnan’s pioneering tea plantations, warmed from beneath by the deep sea creek of the Fal.

McQueens are very excited to be working alongside Tregothnan - we’re so inspired by the beautiful botanics, our florists have created the Truro bouquet from the classic Tregothnan, where is this foliage grown and can you tell us about some of the ingredients?

We have two main areas on the estate where our fabulous foliage grows – Pig Meadow and Barn Close. Both meadows are around half a mile from the florists’ workshop where the foliage is cut and packed. Pig Meadow has Eucalyptus, Parvifolia, Drymis (Pepperleaf), Euc. Nicholli, Euc. Gunni, Myrtle and Hazel. The meadow is enclosed by a beautiful wall of hydrangeas in a whole spectrum of blues, lilacs and ultramarine hues.

Barn Close is more of an off-road experience! Down a winding farm track and across fields of baby tea bushes, Barn Close is the furthest West section of the hub of Tregothnan Estate. Barn Close is home to a 150m run of Callestemon (Bottlebrush), six 60m rows of Euc. Subcrenula, Euc. Perriniana, Pittosporum, Elaeagnus, Bay, Tree Ivy, Camellia, Manuka, Rubus, Cinera, Mini Laurel and Willow.