Teas and Trees Talk

Tregothnan Teaman to Tell Tales of Teas and Trees at CGS October Lectures

The Cornwall Garden Society’s (CGS) Autumn Lecture Programme will be launched by Jonathon Jones OBE who is Managing Director, Trading of the historic Tregothnan Estate at Tresillian near Truro.

Eight miles from the coast and with the deep sea creek of the Fal Estuary running through it, Tregothnan is the largest, private botanical garden in Cornwall and has been nurturing and protecting rare species within its warm and humid micro-climate for 700 years.

Pioneering the introduction of the Camellia into Great Britain more than two centuries ago, Tregothnan is now home to the Royal Horticultural Society’s National Collections® of Camellia reticulata and Camellia sasanqua.

In the mid-1990s, Tregothnan’s gardeners suspected that because of the success of ornamental Camellia, the tea variety – Camellia sinensis – might also grow successfully within the estate’s unique environment. Much research was undertaken including trips to tea regions in India and Japan to understand more about the processes and pitfalls of growing and harvesting the precious leaves, and in 1999, the very first British tea bushes were planted there.

With 29 miles of tea planted in 25 years, Tregothnan’s thriving plantation has become the largest tea garden in Europe and its award-winning luxury brand – the most British tea in history – can be enjoyed across the globe. Even in China, Jonathon is known as ‘the Teaman’!

Jonathon has also launched an easy to use ‘phone app to map Tregothnan’s rare collection of trees and shrubs – Tremap – to map every tree on earth to help amateurs, academics, private gardeners and professionals care for trees and manage green spaces. This global database has already mapped a staggering 15,419,265 trees across the world.

This lecture is free for CGS members. Non-members are welcome to attend to find out more about the Society and donations are gratefully received.