TREGOTHNAN'S famous Christmas Tree Experience is now open every day until December 23, from 9am to 5pm.

A wonderful family day out, the free-entry event offers visitors the opportunity to select, cut, or dig their own conifer from a wide choice of non-drop varieties through to the traditional Norway spruce, which grows up to 40-feet long on the estate's fertile land.

Although Tregothnan, near Truro, is a private working estate, with the largest historic gardens in Cornwall, this unusual festive event is a great chance to explore the large expanse of woodland and to select your perfect tree.

A fascinating alternative to the standard Christmas tree and sure to be a bestseller is the Wollemi Pine, also dubbed as The Dinosaur Tree.

The rare conifer was thought to be extinct until 1994 when a tiny grove was discovered near Sydney, Australia. Tregothnan immediately registered interest and soon became an official home for the tree.

It has been promoting the conservation of the tree with novel ways of spreading the young plants around the world as part of the strategy to ensure its future survival.

Tregothnan is, in fact, an official safe site for the keeping of many rare or endangered trees from all over the world.

Also on offer from the festive estate shop are cast iron Christmas tree stands, as well as a huge array of perfect seasonal gifts including Tregothnan's herbal infusions, tea towels, hampers, biscuits, chinaware, wreaths, and preserves.

A cup of finest Tregothnan English tea will cost just £1 – www.tregothnan.com

This past week the estate has been extremely busy with Christmas preparations. Its biggest Christmas tree yet, a 40-foot beauty, was recently cut down and transported to Camborne for their town square. Last week the team joined forces with Canoe Cornwall and the National Trust to deliver a 25-foot fir tree to Trelissick Gardens by raft built big enough to paddle the tree from the Tregothnan Quay to Roundwood Quay at Trelissick. Luckily the river was calm and there was only one short sharp shower on such a sunny day.

Above, Estate staff Brian Bowden and Brian Eyers with the 40ft tree. Inset, paddling the tree down the Fal to Trelissick.