Set against some Europe' s most dramatic natural scenery, the gardens of Cornwall are stunning in their impact.

The first reaction of most visitors is awed delight at the vibrant luxuriance of the planting: for the serendipity of Cornwall' s damp, mild climate has made it an ideal home for many of the great plant-hunter collections. But the springtime show of camellias, rhododendrons and magnolias that rank almost as the national emblems of Cornwall is just one strand in the astonishing diversity of Cornish gardens.

Many of the historic estates - Tresco, Trebah and Glendurgan, St Michael' s Mount and Mount Edgcumbe - taking advantage of their position on coast or combe, have provided for themselves carefully crafted settings against the backdrop of the sea.

Heligan is that extraordinary rarity an intact Victorian estate, while Antony and other gardens with old roots have embraced new trends with style and exuberance. Contemporary like the free falling jungle at Lamorran House, Barbara Hepworth' s impeccably designed set for her sculptures in St Ives and the hugely ambitious sculpture garden at Tremenheere are individual statements of the highest quality. Most ambitious of all, Tim Smith' s Eden Project expands the whole concept of the garden into a new realm - almost a new world.

In this book garden expert Katherine Lambert takes us on an intriguing tour of the gardens of Cornwall, from the Devon border to the offshore island of Tresco. Alex Ramsay' s superb photographs reveal the gardens in all their glory.