Many people across the country embarked on home refurbishments and DIY projects during the pandemic. For the team at Tregrehan Gardens, their lockdown endeavour was the transformation of The Gamekeeper’s Cottage, an old 19th Century cottage at the end of the Old Carriage House.
“The Gamekeeper’s Cottage is right next to the Garden Entrance, so when the garden was closed it gave us, along with a great local building team, a chance to renovate the interior,” Tom Hudson, Head Gardener and part of the Carlyon family who own the Tregrehan Estate, said.
“The holiday cottage is now much more light and airy with the redecoration. We changed the stairwell completely to allow more natural light in and offer direct access to a walled garden, as well as improving heat conservation, rewiring for better connectivity and installing good water pressure!”
Tregrehan were keen to keep green credentials a high priority during the renovation work, installing a wood burner that uses wood supplied from the nearby woodland, double glazing in the north windows and solar panels, as well as insulating the roof and walls.
Enthusiasts were excited to visit Tregrehan after seeing the results of the project:
“Unrecognisable! What a transformation!” – Anna Mulholland-Borlase
“Looks great! Looking forward to visiting you again.” – Sam Lismont
“I feel another trip coming on!” – Zoe Cranleigh-Swash
Describing the beauty of a stay at Tregrehan, Tom said, “You get the peace and quiet of staying on a traditional family estate, surrounded by unspoilt parkland and gardens. Each cottage has its own separate entrance and garden area, and yet our central location means we’re also within reach of the coastline just a mile or two away.”
“The season last spring in 2020 was incredible, with hardly a cloud in the sky for two months. It was a real shame that there were no visitors here to see the display – but with the transformation of The Gamekeeper’s Cottage, we’re hoping that even more visitors will be able to join us to see such colourful sights in the springs to come.”
Tregrehan Gardens have extended their opening season indefinitely and will now close at the end of October every year.