Tropical and Exotic Planting in Cornwall: Making the Most of Our Changing Climate

Cornwall has always attracted gardeners who want to push the boundaries of what is possible in Britain. The county's mild maritime climate has long made it a place where the adventurous and the ambitious could grow plants that would be impossible almost anywhere else on the mainland — and that spirit of horticultural ambition, of testing limits and discovering what thrives, is one of the things that makes Cornish gardening so distinctive and so alive.

Climate change is extending that tradition. As summers warm and the frequency of damaging winter cold events decreases, the range of tropical and exotic species that can be grown with confidence in Cornish gardens is expanding. Plants that previously required careful protection, or could only be attempted in the most sheltered and favoured positions, are becoming more reliable across a wider range of sites. The boundaries are moving, and for those of us who love plants, that is genuinely exciting.

This article explores what is now possible with tropical and exotic planting in Cornwall, what these plants need to perform well, and how to use them in ways that feel considered and coherent rather than simply a collection of spectacle.

Why Cornwall and exotic planting belong together

The connection between Cornwall and exotic planting has deep roots. The great nineteenth century plant hunters who sent back species from South America, Asia, and beyond were partly motivated by the knowledge that Cornwall's climate could support plants that would be challenging elsewhere in Britain. The valley gardens that emerged from that era — with their tree ferns, rhododendrons, and extraordinary range of tender shrubs — were essentially exotic gardens by the standards of their time.

That tradition has continued into the contemporary era. Some of Cornwall's most celebrated recent gardens have been built around a bold, subtropical aesthetic — embracing palms, tree ferns, bananas, and large-leaved exotics to create spaces that feel genuinely tropical in the height of summer. At one contemporary Cornish garden I have worked with closely, plants that were established thirty years ago and barely grew for much of that time have suddenly taken off as winters have warmed — a vivid illustration of how the changing climate is actively enabling the exotic planting tradition rather than undermining it.

The reasons Cornwall suits exotic planting go beyond temperature alone. The quality of light — softer and more diffuse than inland Britain, but with long summer days — suits many large-leaved species that need light without the scorching intensity of a truly continental summer. The reliable moisture, even as summers dry somewhat, supports the lush growth that tropical aesthetics require. And the county's topography — sheltered valleys, south-facing slopes, coastal positions moderated by the sea — provides a range of microclimates that can be exploited to extend the range of what is possible even further.

What is now reliably possible

The plants that define the tropical and exotic garden aesthetic in Cornwall fall into several broad groups, each with its own requirements and character.

Tree ferns — principally Dicksonia antarctica from Australia and New Zealand — remain the most iconic exotic plants in Cornish gardens, and deservedly so. Their prehistoric silhouette, the architectural crown of fronds, and the extraordinary texture of the fibrous trunk create an immediate and powerful sense of tropical atmosphere. In Cornwall's mild, moist climate they grow with remarkable vigour, and as winters warm they are becoming reliable in an increasingly wide range of positions. They require moisture at the crown during dry periods — this is their principal need — and some shelter from the most damaging salt winds, but given these conditions they are among the most rewarding plants that can be grown in Cornwall.

Palms offer a range of possibilities depending on the level of exposure and the specific microclimate available. Trachycarpus fortunei, the Chusan palm, is the most reliably hardy and the most widely grown, and its distinctive silhouette has become part of Cornwall's visual identity as I describe in my article on signature plants of Cornwall. Butia yatay, the jelly palm, is a beautiful and increasingly viable alternative for sunny, well-drained positions — its arching blue-grey fronds giving a more graceful effect than the upright Trachycarpus. Phoenix canariensis, the Canary Island date palm, is possible in the warmest and most sheltered Cornish positions, and its success in such sites is becoming more consistent as winters moderate.

Bananas bring perhaps the most dramatic large-leaved effect available to Cornish gardeners. Musa basjoo, the Japanese banana, is the hardiest species and the most widely grown — its enormous paddle-shaped leaves can reach impressive proportions in a single season given good soil, moisture, and a sheltered position. Ensete ventricosum 'Maurelii', the Abyssinian banana, offers even more dramatic foliage with a rich red-purple flush to the midrib and undersides of the leaves, and while less hardy than Musa it is increasingly viable in sheltered Cornish gardens as winters warm. Both species create an immediate sense of tropical lushness that few other plants can match.

Hedychium — the ginger lilies — are among the most rewarding exotic perennials for Cornish conditions, combining large, tropical-looking foliage with intensely fragrant flowers in white, cream, yellow, and orange through late summer and autumn. They thrive in rich, moist soil in a sheltered position, and in Cornwall's climate many species are reliably perennial given a reasonable mulch in winter. Canna, with its bold foliage in green, bronze, and burgundy, performs a similar role at somewhat smaller scale and is increasingly reliable outdoors year-round in favoured Cornish positions.

For sheltered walls and warm aspects, Brugmansia — the angel's trumpets — offer extraordinary pendulous flowers of great size and powerful fragrance, in white, cream, yellow, and peach. Previously considered too tender for outdoor cultivation in most of Cornwall, warming winters are making them viable in sheltered positions, and a well-grown specimen in full flower is one of the most spectacular sights in the late summer garden. Clianthus puniceus, the lobster claw, brings vivid red or pink flowers of extraordinary form to warm walls, and Embothrium coccineum, the Chilean fire bush, provides a blaze of scarlet in late spring that is almost unmatched for intensity among hardy plants.

What these plants need

For all the excitement of what is becoming possible, tropical and exotic planting in Cornwall is not without its demands. Understanding what these plants actually need — rather than simply where they might survive — is the difference between a collection that merely persists and one that genuinely thrives.

Shelter is the most fundamental requirement. The large leaves that make exotic plants so visually dramatic are also highly vulnerable to wind damage — tearing, desiccating, and browning at the edges in exposed positions in ways that quickly destroy the lush, tropical effect. Establishing good shelter before attempting ambitious exotic planting is essential, and the shelterbelt planting principles that have always underpinned Cornish garden making are as relevant here as they ever were. The ecological and wildlife gardening approach I apply in my work — building structure and resilience through layered planting — creates exactly the kind of sheltered microclimate in which exotic species perform best.

Moisture is the second key requirement. Most large-leaved tropical species are high water users, and in Cornwall's increasingly dry summers they will need support during prolonged dry spells. The irrigation and water management strategies I describe in my article on water-smart gardening in Cornwall are directly applicable here — drip irrigation fed from harvested rainwater is the most sustainable and effective way to maintain the moisture levels these plants need without excessive mains water use.

Soil richness matters more for exotic planting than for many other garden styles. Large-leaved species producing dramatic growth in a single season are heavy feeders, and the soil needs to support that growth through good fertility and organic matter content. Regular addition of well-rotted organic matter — compost, manure, leaf mould — maintains the moisture-retentive, nutritious growing medium that most tropical species prefer.

Using exotic planting with coherence and intent

The most successful tropical and exotic gardens are not simply collections of spectacular plants arranged for individual effect. They are coherent spaces with a clear aesthetic vision — where the choice and arrangement of plants creates a sense of place and atmosphere that is greater than the sum of its parts.

This means thinking carefully about how exotic species are combined with each other and with more familiar garden plants. Large-leaved exotics — bananas, tree ferns, cannas, hedychiums — provide the dramatic backbone. Medium-scale plants — Tetrapanax, Melianthus, Paulownia coppiced for foliage effect — fill the middle ground. Closer to ground level, bold-leaved perennials, ferns, and grasses create continuity and connect the exotic planting to the surrounding garden. The result, at its best, is a layered, immersive experience that feels genuinely tropical rather than simply theatrical.

For garden design projects with a subtropical brief, this layered approach also connects naturally to the ecological planting principles I describe in my article on building a resilient Cornish garden — structural diversity, functional redundancy, and the creation of genuine microclimates through planting rather than hard landscaping alone.

For holiday home gardens in Cornwall, a well-executed exotic planting scheme is a genuinely valuable asset — creating an atmosphere of warmth, lushness, and distinctly Cornish character that guests remember and return for. And for outdoor living spaces — around pergolas, decking, and sheltered seating areas — exotic planting provides exactly the kind of immersive, enveloping atmosphere that makes an outdoor space feel like a destination rather than simply an extension of the house.

The tradition continues

Cornwall's relationship with exotic and tropical planting is not a recent trend. It is a tradition with deep roots in the county's gardening history, sustained by a climate that has always been generous by British standards and is now becoming more so. The plant hunters, the great garden makers, the contemporary pioneers who pushed the boundaries of what was possible — they were all responding to the same fundamental truth: that Cornwall's climate invites ambition.

That invitation is more open now than it has ever been. The question is not whether tropical and exotic planting belongs in Cornwall — it always has — but how to use it with the knowledge, care, and coherence that the tradition deserves.

Jodi Dickinson MHort(RHS) is a professional horticulturist and head gardener at the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden, St Ives. Juniper Gardens provides specialist garden maintenance, garden design and ecological garden care across mid and west Cornwall. View Jodi's full profile here.