At Ardkinglass Estate, they know they're the tops. Bill Knox gets the measure of their heady success

ONE hundred thousand visitors can't be wrong - the 12,000-acre Ardkinglass Estate, at Cairndow, Argyll, deserves to be high on the agenda for any day out.

It is home of the official Scottish National Collection of fir and spruce trees and has six of the tallest trees in the United Kingdom, soaring to a majestic 200 feet.

''Obviously there is no way we can bring them to the gardening show,'' said Mark Sands, a director of Ardkinglass Estate. ''But we will be showing a display collection of rare and unusual trees from around the world. It will amount to a global view - a 'tree map' displaying many varieties seldom seen together.''

Some 30 varieties of trees, all young potted specimens and each up to 10 feet high, will be the centrepiece of the Ardkinglass Estate tree map.

Located just off the A83 Campbeltown road at the head of Loch Fyne, Ardkinglass is true tree growing territory.

''We have an ideal tree-growing climate, mild and often wet,'' said Sands. Assisted by Sally Hall, he has spent months tracking down some of the trees to be sent to Strathclyde Park. These include the vigorous red maple Acer rubrum from North America, the Italian alder Alnus codata, the katsura tree Cercidiphyllum japonicum and the rare Kashmir grown Sorbus cashmiriana with its pink-flushed white flowers.

''They will be side by side on our world tree map with the fast-growing beech Nothofagus obliqua found in Argentina and Chile, which has rich coloured leaves, and the alpine cider gum Eucalyptus archeri from Tasmania with its white-to-grey bark, green patches, and pink leaves.'' Other trees represent the United States, Europe, China and New Zealand.

For the past nine years the team from Cairndow has also built up a mail order service, specialising in unusual plants and trees. But, as Sally Hall explains, most visitors come to ''marvel at our giants''.

''They are recognised as the mightiest conifers in Europe - one silver fir is 30 feet in girth. An Avis Alba fir has developed four massive trunks.

''The question we are asked most often - after heights - is how old these trees might be. One probably dates from around 1790. The nearest we can give to a real answer is to show an old postcard. It shows an Avis Alba silver fir which then was a mere 'infant' at 150 feet high!

''We are proud of our champion conifers, but Ardkinglass has many other splendid trees, both native and from other countries, in our collection. Visitors tell us they enjoy seeing the rich variety of trees so close to Glasgow and the towns of Central Scotland.''

And it seems as if the team are assured of a good reception for their impressive exhibit. ''Initial response seems to show that we have caught people's imagination,'' said Sands. ''Bringing such a group of young trees together and ensuring they are all in peak condition at the same time for the move to their new temporary home at Strathclyde Park was not the easiest of tasks - but it was well worth while.''