Until the First World War, the estate gardens at Heligan were one of the glories of Cornwall. Thereafter, through growing neglect, they slipped gradually to sleep. This is the amazing story of their rediscovery and restoration, or the Victorian vision and ingenuity which first created that subtropical paradise, and of the modern obsession and improvisation which recreated it. 'This is the book for all those people, gardeners and non-gardeners alike, who have visited Heligan and come away inspired and deeply moved by what they have seen ...it is every bit as riveting as the garden itself' Country Life 'Only the most stony-hearted could resist the power of such an obsession' New Statesman