Follow Cornwall's Spring Story...

The moment Cornish Magnolias flower, Spring has arrived in England.

Over the years it has become increasingly apparent that some people do not fully appreciate quite how early spring arrives in Cornwall and how much earlier than the rest of England. Whilst there are lovely gardens to explore in Cornwall thoughout the year really the very best time to visit the Cornish Spring Gardens is when Cornish Magnolias are in full bloom in the early part of the season.  The blooming of Magnolia flowers often occurs around the middle of March - a fact rarely even appreciated by gardeners throughout the rest of England.

So we have started the idea of Cornwall's Spring Story to mark the moment Cornish Magnolias flower and to announce that spring has arrived in England.

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The Nare and the Great Gardens of Cornwall have declared the first day of spring to be Tuesday 19th February.

Three champion trees at Trebah, Trengwainton and Trewidden gardens have burst into flower with hundreds of buds, thanks to the mild temperatures and glorious sunshine of recent days. Overnight and into Wednesday 20th February those trees were joined by others at Tregothnan, Trewithen and Caerhays, meaning all 6 of our challengers are now in full bloom. Spring really is here!
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The idea of The Moment

With this in mind The Nare Hotel and the Great Gardens of Cornwall have joined forces to launch the Cornwall Spring Story in order to prove that spring really does arrive in Cornwall first. Six nominated significant Magnolia campbellii are being monitored in six different Great Gardens in Cornwall to record the date the Magnolias come into full bloom. The moment three out of the six champion magnolia trees have flowered with a count of at least 50 blooms on each tree, then Cornwall will declare that spring has arrived in England.

Follow the progress this spring by visiting the Spring Story on the Great Gardens of Cornwall website .  The Head Gardeners of each of the six gardens are giving feedback as their Magnolia buds shed their outer jackets and prepare to bloom. There will be comment and intrigue and regular postings and photographs as the trees come into flower and the date that spring is announced.

Also you may wish to follow the story on twitter @Gr8Gardens following #firstsignofspring



Competition

Visit the Great Gardens of Cornwall website to register for your chance to win a 4 night break at The Nare, including tickets for all of the participating gardens. The competition is open until 31st December 2013 and the winning couple will be invited to join us at The Nare during the Spring of 2014 with the chance to visit the Great Gardens of Cornwall when the magnolias are flowering.