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Two Great Places To See In Devon

By Rod Booth

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Published: 12Sep2008
Word count: 484
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Greenway was the acclaimed writer Agatha Christie's garden (she was known locally as Mrs Mallowan when she owned it). It makes an especially enjoyable half day out, even more so when visited by ferry from Dartmouth, Brixham and Torquay, landing at Greenway Quay.

Greenway is not only extremely beautiful, but dates back over 500 years since it was first owned by the Gilberts (one of their sons, Sir Humphrey, was to become Lord Lieutenant of Devon). It is a significant horticultural treasure, where each successive owner has contributed to the wonderful legacy that is today managed by the National Trust.

The garden presents a totally magnificent atmosphere mixing refined wilderness with romance and mystery. It is well known for its rare half-hardy plants and displays of wild flowers. It is extremely well-positioned and offers remarkable views of the Dart estuary and surrounding environs.

Over the years, the various owners built new buildings and extended the gardens and grounds. In the late 1700's, the designer Humphry Repton developed the landscape of the property, the original style of which remains to this day.

In the late 19th Century and into the early 20th Century, the species in the gardens were extensively catalogued, noting, amongst others, the Monterey pines, eucalyptus and acacias as well as a multitude of flowering climbers and other plant species.

The 1920's saw the then owner Charles Williams planting extensively throughout the gardens. Agatha Christie together with her husband Max Mallowan, the famous archaeologist, maintained the gardens with vigour, and it remained in her family's ownership until they gave it to the National Trust in 2000. It's a garden you must see if you ar ein the area!

The scientist and inventor Otto Overbeck brought some rare and tropical plants to his eponymous gardens in Overbeck Sharpitor at Salcome.

Overbeck Sharpitor is a very stylish and elegant Edwardian house. Originally designed in the early 1900's by Edric Hopkins, Otto Overbeck developed it further when he took it over in 1928. The quite spectacular 6-acre cliff-top gardens offer magnificent views over the Salcombe estuary. Designed as a series of terraces and enclosures, they are full of wonderfully coloured plants from all over the world. Many are tropical and some are quite rare, species normally only grown by the brave enthusiast under glass. However, they are able to grow here because of the warmer 'micro' climate in and around the garden.

A very spectacular spectacular sight in this garden is the flowering of the one hundred year old Magnolia campbelli.

The property houses the Overbecks Museum, and six of the rooms form a treasure-trove of Overbeck's lifelong devotion to Natural History, fauna, children's toys, ship-building, his drawings and the sea. Afternoon tea is served in the Billiard Room.

Dr. Otto Overbeck gave the house and grounds to the National Trust in 1937.

Read more about Devon at The Devon Visitor Guide

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