Going bananas at Overbeck’s

A couple in South Devon were delighted to be able to bring a taste of the tropics to their recent wedding with the help of their local National Trust property.

The bride, who is from Ecuador, really wanted a banana leaf in her bridal bouquet as the plant reminded her of her homeland and therefore had huge sentimental significance. Her florist Linsay Johns searched high and low for a suitable leaf with no success and, on the day before the wedding, approached National Trust’s Overbeck’s in desperation.

Overbeck’s Assistant Property Manager, Denise Salter, says: ‘When I received a phone call from Linsay on a late Friday afternoon with this unexpected and unusual request I was determined to help. The whole team at Overbeck’s pride themselves on their warm welcome and I am delighted that this could be extended from South Devon all the way to Ecuador.’

The gardeners at Overbeck’s were more than happy to help and cut down their sole surviving leaf, together with some beautiful tendrils to bind the bouquet, resulting in a hugely relieved florist and a very grateful and happy bride.

The exotic garden of Overbeck’s, perched high on the cliffs above Salcombe, is renowned for its unusual design and planting which takes full advantage of the coast’s Mediterranean micro-climate. Bananas were first planted in the garden around 1900 and a large group of them still thrive today. The bananas live in one of the most sheltered parts of the garden and together with other large leaved companions, such as palm trees and giant rhubarb, really put the tropical into sub-tropical.

Click here for more information about Overbeck's.