When we were in Cornwall we went to the famous old fishing village of Clovelly on the north coast near Bideford, and I am really glad we did. Despite the obvious difficulties of the steep hill and the cobbled streets, it was a fascinating place to visit and well worth the effort.                                                                                                                                  Why anybody in the 1850’s thought it was a good idea to build a village on a sheer rock face and with everything having to be transported on sleds and pulled by donkeys is a mystery, but they did and it is testament to their ingenuity and determination that they succeeded.                                                                                                                   Anybody who has been right down to the Red Lion Inn on the harbour will know just how painful on the knees it can be! I managed to get down to the really steep last 100 feet of steps and gave up!                                                                                                               My wife, who is far fitter and more agile than me, made it all the way down and, more importantly, back up again!

As this is a gardening blog, I thought it had better have some horticultural content so here it is! On the way down the hill, in a little side street, I came across a Fuchsia tree! It was obviously very old judging from the stem which was gnarled and at least 70mm thick and it was growing against the house in very little soil. However, it was flowering well and looked very healthy. Has anyone any idea of the variety?