Cornwall Garden Society puts nearly £4,000 into new growers

A brushcutter course at Trevince Gardens. Seed-saving lessons. A classroom kit that lets pupils grow plants indoors. And an accredited tractor course for good measure.

They have all been paid for by the same pot. The Cornwall Garden Society (CGS) has awarded £3,930 in bursaries so far this year, supporting horticultural education, practical training and school-based growing projects across the county.

Where the money has gone

The charity runs three schemes: the Educational Bursary, the Schools Bursary and the Thistledown Horticultural Bursary. Between them they have funded practical training, gardening resources, school gardens and learning activities, professional development and specialist horticultural courses.

Projects backed this year include equipment to help pupils learn how to grow plants indoors, productive gardening and seed-saving training, and gardening tools, seeds and storage. School garden and gardening club projects have been supported too, along with accredited tractor training and a naturalistic planting design course.

Widening access to horticulture

Pen Polglase, Trustee of Cornwall Garden Society, said: “As a charity, our mission is all about widening access to horticulture and inspiring the next generation of growers and gardeners. Our bursary schemes are part of that commitment, and it’s brilliant to see the funds making a real difference to projects in Cornwall.”

Pen added: “Following the merger with the Cornwall Gardens Trust in 2024, we are also pleased that the Educational Bursary can support projects that help research, protect and raise awareness of Cornwall’s historic gardens and designed landscapes.”

A trainee at Trevince Gardens

One of this year’s recipients is Tamsyn Casley-Oliver, a trainee at Trevince Gardens through the Work and Retrain As a Gardener Scheme (WRAGS).

Her bursary paid for a course in the safe use and maintenance of brushcutters and trimmers. It covered how to recognise and reduce risks, which protective clothing to wear and how to operate the equipment confidently. The course mixes practical training with assessment, and those who complete it receive a certificate of competence.

What each bursary covers

Educational Bursary

For people developing their horticultural knowledge and skills. It also welcomes applications for projects that research, protect or raise awareness of Cornwall’s historic gardens and designed landscapes.

Schools Bursary

Helps schools introduce or develop gardening and growing projects.

Thistledown Horticultural Bursary

Supports individuals pursuing horticultural training and career development.

How to apply

The 2027 Wells Bursary is now open for applications, with grants available for projects focused on climate change and sustainability.

Applications for the Educational, Schools and Thistledown Horticultural Bursary schemes can be made at any time of year. Details of all the bursaries, and of membership, are on the Cornwall Garden Society website.

Nearly 200 years in the making

The Cornwall Garden Society traces its roots back to 1832 and the first horticultural society in Cornwall, set up to show off the Duchy’s fruit, flowers and vegetables. After a gap in the records, spring flower shows revived the tradition from 1897, and the organisation was formally reconstituted as the Cornwall Garden Society in 1958.

In 2024 it merged with the Cornwall Gardens Trust (CGT), broadening its aims to raise awareness of Cornwall’s historic gardens and designed landscapes and to promote research into, and conservation of, the county’s garden heritage.

The society now runs talks, workshops and visits. Its annual Spring Flower Show at the Royal Cornwall Showground near Wadebridge, described as ‘the Chelsea of the South West’, is still one of the highlights of the horticultural calendar.

📷Tamsyn Casley-Oliver, Work and Retrain As a Gardener Scheme (WRAGS) trainee at Trevince Gardens, who received a CGS bursary earlier this year for a course in brushcutting by Lantra