Photo credit: Kew Gardens © Kul Jay/Shutterstock.com
As London is bursting into colour with the first blooms of spring, it’s a fabulous time to seek inspiration for your garden.
London has some beautiful spaces to explore, its own museum dedicated to gardening and two major horticultural shows. Our recommendations include:
Hampton Court Tulip Festival (15 April – 6 May)
Showcasing over 100,000 tulips, the Hampton Court Tulip Festival is one of the UK’s largest tulip displays.
Chelsea Flower Show (21 – 25 May)
Held in the historic grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the Chelsea Flower Show showcases innovations in garden design and ideas for urban and artisan gardens. The Floral Marquee presents a fantastic range of plants from some of the world’s best growers and nurseries.
Hampton Court Garden Festival (2 – 7 July)
This annual show is an excellent place to obtain ideas for your own garden with a fabulous programme of talks and demonstrations from industry experts, and an array of cut flowers and vegetables on display.
Chelsea Physic Garden
This beautiful four-acre garden, which was established in 1673, is the perfect haven for connecting with nature. Uniquely, it’s the only botanic garden which solely grows plants which are herbal, medicinal or can be utilised in other ways.
Garden Museum
Set alongside Lambeth Palace on the banks of the River Thames, the Garden Museum’s collection includes art, tools and gardening ephemera. It explores the evolution of gardening through social history. Highlights for its 2024 calendar include the Spring Plant Fair (14 April), Gardening Bohemia: Bloomsbury Women Outdoors (15 May – 29 September) and the Lost Gardens of London (23 October – 2 March 2025).
Hyde Park
Hyde Park, which is just a short walk from Hertford Street, is home to an incredible rose garden which is a must-see in June and July when the blooms are in full glory. There is also the Dell alongside the Serpentine which has its own alpine garden. This peaceful space was a popular place for nannies to take their charges in times past.
Kew Gardens
Hailed as the “largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world”, Kew Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is home to over 50,000 plants and covers 300 acres. The Gardens include Temperate House (the world’s largest Victorian greenhouse), Edible Science: Kew’s Kitchen Garden, the Great Pagoda, Palm House, Princess of Wales Conservatory, the Marianne North Gallery, and the library and archives. It hosts tours, wellbeing sessions, courses and exhibitions.