Your evocative description of the fine Garden at Glendurgan in Cornwall prompts me to suggest that you hurry on back to England's South West and visit the other seventy odd Gardens open to the public in Cornwall! And when you have done that you can start on the Gardens of Devon! Then you can keep us captivated for a year or two with your articles until you get your book out. Trouble is that I fear that your own garden would suffer from your absence.

You might like to visit the website of The Travel Sleuth who has some interesting articles on Cornwall and its countryside and Gardens. I think you might have a lot in common. You can access him on http://travel.to/travelsleuth .

Since I won't let anyone else in the beds, you are so right David - my garden would never forgive me for being gone very long. But don't tempt me! No worry, my shelves are full of photos and memories from dozens of lovely past garden visits that I would love to share on the site. Am considering a new report each month. Really must give up sleeping tho.

And have met so many enjoyable US gardeners through email and visited their earthly works through images, that am wanting to also share my virtual visits of their gardens on these pages. Think I hear the undergardener cringing, as he doesn't do as well as I without sleep.

Haven't answered you very timely - I went the tremendous UK travel site you recommended and nearly spent the last 4 days touring through the gazillion links ... well nearly! Have virtually met Mr. MacWatt, and you were right on that one too.

Good to hear from you again, toaster winner!
Maggie

In one of your photos you show a cyclamen blooming and mention that they tend to take over in the garden like a weed. How do you get them to do that? I cant even keep one alive, let alone persuade it to go forth and multiply...

See if you find any clues in this Dave.
Larger flowered, gift-wrapped hybrid cyclamen from the florist or flower stall are frost tender, but hardy wild cyclamen require humus-rich alkaline soil that remains dry during summer under the shade of deciduous trees, with occasional rains during autumn and winter. Given all that, the most necessary requirement of garden culture is the gardener's patience!

Purchased and planted in fall, the tubers seldom show any signs of life for the next twelve months, then produce a meager crop of leaves that first season and if happy, produce their first flowers the third winter after planting. This has been my experience here which matches many published accounts of other gardeners - the catalogs seldom brag about the wait! When all their needs are met, the flowers are reputed to produce an abundance of seed that causes those complaints about weediness that I have yet to have been endowed with. Around late September, I must protect the site from snails and slugs, which would otherwise clean off any emerging leaves of established tubers. I suspect that my lack of attendance at germination time may be the cause of mine not spreading into what I think must be the most desirable of 'weeds'!

I would love to hear from anyone with such a 'problem'. They are welcome to complain about it all they like on this page and in return, they can ship all those weeds to Dave and me.