The Eden Project

A day at the Eden project is a day well spent, there is no doubt about that. We have been failing to visit the Eden Project for years, but finally made the drive from Derbyshire to spend a week in St Austell in September 2011. We had a great, relaxing time but the Eden Project is by far the biggest highlight!

We took a short drive from our lodge to the Eden Project. It was clearly sign-posted and easy to find, unlike some parts of Cornwall as you can see in this image! Confusing Road Signs in Cornwall

Gardener’s World Voucher

I had the bonus of a Gardener’s World Magazine Subscription and had a 2 for 1 offer, so 2 of us got in for £28 including an Eden guidebook, which was a few pounds, but a few pounds well spent.

The Slideshow below tells the story of our visit. The first thing that strikes you is the vastness of the site. The huge Biomes are the focal point of a mass of lush growth and botanical splendour.

Rainforest Biome

We were instantly drawn to the Rainforest Biome, but couldn’t help admire the vast collections of wild flowers and herbaceous borders, drawing wildlife into the area. The borders were literally buzzing with bees, wasps and hoverflies.

Inside the Rainforest Biome, the temperature and humidity are significantly higher than outside, which hits you within a few seconds. Apparently, the main area is kept at around 29c – it feels like walking into a huge, recently watered greenhouse. The warmth and humidity are perfect for the tropical inhabitants and you can immediately see hundreds of fantastic specimens in the Rainforest Biome.

Perfect Plants

Everywhere you look there are perfectly formed foliage plants, bulbs, orchids, vines, fruits, epiphytes, carnivorous pants, bromeliads, herbaceous perennials, trees……….you get the message!
I’ve included a few images of the plants in the slideshow below.

Rainforest Lookout

To really take in the Rainforest Biome, we decided to go up to the Rainforest Lookout. The queue was pretty short and we were lucky enough to be allowed straight up, which was a bonus. The walk up to the waiting point highlighted the humidity. The guide told us the air gets to about 35c and feels hot and humid at the top of the platform. I can believe that, as I’m already regretting wearing my jeans and am suddenly sweating buckets. Fortunately, I’m able to lodge myself next to one of the huge fans!

The walkway and lookout are suspended on wires – you can see there are loads of them but you still can’t help but imagine what would happen if one snapped! I’m not sure if being able to see through the walkway helps – you can see people getting smaller and smaller!!

Anyway, the walk up isn’t that bad and once you are on the Platform everything feels a bit more stable. The view is great and the staff are knowledgeable and helpful. You can see how far up you get by the size of the people walking around. You get a great view of the larger plants and a real perspective of the scale of this ‘Big Greenhouse’.

Much More to Do…

There are more Biomes to walk around (the Mediterranean Biome is refreshingly cool after the Rainforest!), an Education centre to visit, along with huge veg gardens, an excellent shop with some great plants at reasonable prices. You shouldn’t mind spending a few pounds in the shop as you know it’ll go to a great cause!!