Poly Ramblers met up with the London Blind Ramblers at the station and walked to Kew Gardens to meet up with Jennifer, our Poly Rambler and Kew volunteer guide. There were 36 of us in all.
Our visit started in the café, where we were able to feel the mural sculpture made out of wood from some of the 700 trees brought down by the Great Storm of 1987, depicting the god of the wind Aeolus, trees and the lion statues and vases in the Gardens.
Then we set off along between the Palm House and the lake, remarking on the stone copies of the “Queen’s beasts”, heraldic animals that were displayed outside Westminster Abbey Annex during the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. We turned left into the steamy atmosphere of the Palm House and out the other side, into the rose garden, stocked by David Austin, to smell roses.
From the rose garden we proceeded into the Woodland Garden, and felt the metal sculpture of a large face, made by the imprint of maple leaves, near the Princess of Wales conservatory, named after Princess Augusta, mother of George III and founder of the Gardens. From there it wasn’t far to the Ice House, a small brick store where George III’s family kept ice for culinary purposes, and onwards to the humming of the Hive and homage to the bee, which has become a permanent intriguing visitor attraction.
Those of us who had done a walkover when the Great Broad Walk Borders were more or less bare, were delighted to see them full of flowers, leading us to a lunch break at picnic tables and bench near the Orangery. Refreshed we set off across the grass to Kew Palace and the herb garden behind where there were lots of herbs for us to feel and smell.
Jennifer left us to carry on back down the Great Broad Walk to the Camellia walk, past the Winter Garden and then we nipped into the Marianne North Gallery as suggested by Jennifer, to visit the amazing collection of Marianne North’s paintings of plants from all over the world, waiting for Chris to catch us up! I have since come across an article in the Kew magazine (Spring 2020) about Marianne and just how untypical she was as a Victorian gentlewoman! Here is a link to her on Wikipedia
Across the grass for a brief visit to the Temperate House and group photo, then along the Cherry Walk, full of blossom earlier in the year, followed by tulips, now also past their best, over the lake by the bridge and on to the Minka House and Sacred Bamboo, which dispels bad dreams, then into the Rhododendron Dell full of stunning blossoms. A brief glimpse of the River Thames and into the Woodland, turning off to the Redwood Grove where we joined hands in a big circle to give us an idea of the circumference of an average redwood tree trunk. There were just enough of us! Chris took a video but unfortunately it is too large to share online.
As time was getting on the group picked up a little speed at last to head towards the facilities near the Victoria Gate where we went our separate ways at the end of a very pleasant, fragrant, warm, sunny day. Our thanks to Jennifer for her explanations of the history and botany of Kew Gardens.
Pam. Photos by Chris
