Kew Gardens - March 2008

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9390803.post-317800232956700952008-03-19T04:09:00.000-07:002008-03-19T04:47:49.997-07:00Kew Gardens - March 2008http://www.nottinghamshirenotes.com Kew Gardens covers more than 300 acres, and as it lies just south of London I thought it was high time I paid it another visit. The train service from London was fast and easy, and with the gates opening at 9.30am it was possible to have a full day. My first stop was at the wonderful Temperate House. It was designed by Decimus Burton and built in stages between 1860 and 1899. It has 4800 sqare metres of floor space - twice that of the more famous Palm House. It ended up three times over estimate, the final cost coming to the equivalent of £11 million in today's money. Complete restoration was carried out <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D2SNkQDRI/AAAAAAAAAl0/8kMoDjqiIyc/s1600-h/Kew+-+Temperate+House.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 91px;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D2SNkQDRI/AAAAAAAAAl0/8kMoDjqiIyc/s320/Kew+-+Temperate+House.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179410364215856402" border="0" /></a>between 1977 and 1980 to Burton's original design. Rainwater is collected in 6 underground storage tanks, with a total capacity of 540,000 litres. It houses mainly tender woody plants, arranged geographically as originally intended <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D399kQDSI/AAAAAAAAAl8/J9IIxoAfcnw/s1600-h/Kew+-+inside+Temperate+House.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 127px; height: 170px;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D399kQDSI/AAAAAAAAAl8/J9IIxoAfcnw/s320/Kew+-+inside+Temperate+House.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179412215346760994" border="0" /></a>when it was designed. One thing that struck me was the high humidity - everywhere there was water, in ponds, on the paths, dripping off the leaves. No wonder it is so hard to replicate these conditions with our house plants! Then it was off on a tour - using a little trailer - with such a good commentary. I would really recommend this - as it gave a good idea of the layout of the Gardens, and I could then decide what I wanted to see in greater detail. Here is a small sample from this 35 minute <a href="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=AzzcxmiCWFo">tour.</a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D65dkQDUI/AAAAAAAAAmM/KV-L5nIg0-A/s1600-h/Kew+-+Queen+Charlotte.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 134px; height: 157px;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D65dkQDUI/AAAAAAAAAmM/KV-L5nIg0-A/s320/Kew+-+Queen+Charlotte.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179415436572233026" border="0" /></a>The cottage built for Queen Charlotte, and only glimpsed through the trees on the tour, sounded fascinating, so I headed off there. It was originally built so the Queen, who lived from 1744 - 1818, could bring her family for picnics! The cottage and its grounds <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D7GdkQDVI/AAAAAAAAAmU/AZZW74ZDlp4/s1600-h/Kew+-+Queen+Charlotte+cottage.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 177px; height: 115px;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D7GdkQDVI/AAAAAAAAAmU/AZZW74ZDlp4/s320/Kew+-+Queen+Charlotte+cottage.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179415659910532434" border="0" /></a>belonged to the Royal Family until 1898 when Queen Victoria gifted them to Kew to commemorate her Diamond Jubilee. Another fascinated building is the Princess of Wales Conservatory where you can see a variety of plants from cacti to orchids, and a big pond with amazing sting rays gliding about!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D7vtkQDWI/AAAAAAAAAmc/4q3p88LEROI/s1600-h/Kew+-+inside+Prin.+Di+Con.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 218px; height: 146px;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D7vtkQDWI/AAAAAAAAAmc/4q3p88LEROI/s320/Kew+-+inside+Prin.+Di+Con.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179416368580136290" border="0" /></a> What made my visit even more memorable, and a contributing factor on my deciding to go at this time, was an amazing exhibition of Henry Moore sculptures. Could they ever have been in a more beautiful setting? Surrounded by 100,000 daffodils, blossom trees and magnolias it was truly a memorial visit. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D8ZNkQDXI/AAAAAAAAAmk/LgTJSjo-ucQ/s1600-h/Kew+-+Moore+sculpture.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 123px; height: 164px;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_xALeGBov1kw/R-D8ZNkQDXI/AAAAAAAAAmk/LgTJSjo-ucQ/s320/Kew+-+Moore+sculpture.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179417081544707442" border="0" /></a>Nottinghamshire Noteshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10494955663830081502noreply@blogger.com