Camellias, mostly – a beautifully colourful tour through the woodland landscapes at RHS Wisley

Such a beautifully sunny, warm and fragrant afternoon at RHS Wisley. Crowds upon crowds filling the car parks but amongst the meandering paths of Battleston Hill, just a few folk pottering through the woodland paths, admiring the camellias. An amazingly colourful display pretty much at their peak, or just a little over, filling the wooded…

Floating Hellebores …. sunshine and ice

First there was a wide pool of water with the floating heads of Hellebores, upturned to enjoy the sunshine. Garden gathered Anna's Red, White Tutu and the original, purple Tutu, Winter Moonbeam, a few hybrids...  then came the big freeze -

A Celebration of Snowdrops (and a few more choice beauties) at the RHS London Early Spring Show

Well this is either going to be your thing, or not - one huge gallery of snowdrops from the RHS Early Spring Show in the Horticultural Halls in London which ran over the past couple of days. Harveys Garden Plants uppermost, and W&S Lockyer providing the most excitement. A few Hippeastrums in there too from…

Taking a peek inside the Alpine House at RHS Wisley – and a scented meander down through the Rock Garden into Seven Acre Wood ….

A little peak inside the Alpine House which sits atop the Rock Garden in the RHS gardens at Wisley (the rose garden is behind, an allée of Bonsai trees to one side and the vegetable garden too, if you need to get your bearings. This is a traditional glasshouse where the plants are mostly displayed…

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered – by these colourful, beguilingly fragrant Witch Hazels at RHS Wisley

A fine day yesterday, after that miserably wet weekend but still, having a day off, a chance to head over to the RHS gardens at Wisley. My mission: to stop by the Alpine House, take in a few snowdrops, inhale my first fragrant dose of Daphne bholua, bag the first of the Hellebores and of…

Kew in the Country – an early Autumn tour of Wakehurst Place

Quite the contrast from the sunshine and blue skies enjoyed just yesterday. Cool, cloudy, a little drizzle and everybody kitted out as if they were about to take on a winters' trek through the Lake District. Still, October it is and Autumn is beginning to tickle the trees in this vast and varied landscape and…

A return visit and a more leisurely tour of RHS Wisley

A return visit to the gardens at RHS Wisley, in the brightest of sunshine, to take a more leisurely walk than I had time for last week - and to stroll through the orchards, Glasshouse borders and seven acre wood. Hugely busy as you might expect on the eve of a Bank Holiday weekend but…

A view from Kew – a blossomtastic Spring morning in these Royally Botanic Gardens

It certainly pays to make an early start, especially on such a bright and beautiful morning - and even more so when school holidays are upon us and Kew Gardens becomes a beautiful flower-filled playground and a great spot for a family picnic. For someone as bah-humbug as I about having unpopulated pictures - flowers…