Kew

I really look forward to my Saturdays as it means Kew...

 I had a chilly wait at the gates this morning,  the supposed southwesterly wind was cold and the forecast "mild" seemed inaccurate to say the least..

 the fountain wasn't on this week, but the geese were still enjoying the grass, most of them seemed to be on the grass rather than the flower beds

 the hellebores at the Palm House end of the Broad Walk are encouraging of spring though

 and so are the daffodils that are emerging from their winter slumbers

the euphorbia are growing too

 however, I was cold in the wind so headed into the Princess of Wales glasshouse for some heat first

 I looked hard for the Chinese Water dragons but (early on) they were still hiding



so I concentrated on colour

 and patterns in trunks of trees

and a huge bunch of bananas laid on a rock

































signs of this year's Orchid Festival preparation were also around...
(Elizabeth, to answer your comment last week, it's an annual thing, so yes, it will happen this February-March)

 arches in place

 I headed out through the desert section

 and walked round towards the Evolution garden











where there were little patches of colour

 I was intrigued by these little berries

 the label says it's "sacred bamboo" 

all over Kew, the magnolia buds are swelling

 loved this gnarly tree trunk

 I cut across the grass to the lake

 the mass of dogwoods are the far side of the lake crossing

the geese had been waiting for this chap, he is there most weeks with a big bag of grain for them and an even bigger camera lens.

they flocked to where he sat down

I climbed up the Treetop Walkway now that it was fully accessible to walk round

 I love the bare trees

 against a very grey sky (it was cold and windy up there today!)

 but you do get a good view

 the Pagoda looks closer without leaves on the trees

 looking over towards Wembley, north London (you couldn't see the Wembley arch at the football stadium today)

 I went into the Temperate House (well this is the adjacent building that is kind of an overspill)

 and then crossed the path to the main bit

 I didn't climb up to the platform today but stayed on ground level

 love how whatever this shrub is, is dangling over and round  the statue

 the big tubs of orchids that were round the ledges in one of the connecting octagons, have gone, so I guess they were being prepped for the Festival... we shall see

still a few there though

 pretty little narcissus

 strange stem

 at the base of this

 in the doorway I took a pic across the space

 these flowers last ages

 I had to visit these again

 as I left the Temperate House, there were pockets of blue appearing in the sky (although not in this shot!)

 I walked up the path away from the TH -although we'd had a bit of drizzle - it had now stopped - there wasn't enough for the lovely puddle reflections from a couple of weeks ago

 I headed for the gallery,  they've put up some floral images on the windows (I was too lazy to change lens to get it all in, but quite like the close-cropped look )

 I went in briefly.


I was attracted to this painting of a tulip

the sign says it is watercolour on vellum  and the artist (Celia Hegedus was born in London on 1949 )

 there was more blue in the sky on may way  out

 I wanted to see the witch hazel which you can see in the distance here, now with the sun shining on them

 as I walked past a large tree, I happened to glance up and caught sight of these (bracket?) funghi

 the blossoms are really filling out now

 still not much scent though

 I walked on along the grass towards the Palm House

in the rose garden I could see clusters of red...

 rosehips

I walked through the Palm House and found some little puddles with reflections 

(phone) 

 outside the other door, the geese were still eating the grass!

 gulls were circling overhead

the yellow primulas in the beds seem to be the earliest varieties, the white ones aren't flowering at all yet

 the gulls settled on the water

 across the pond with the POW in the distance

I headed for refreshments!

there was quite a queue as it had somehow got to mid-day,  but I settled for cake and hot chocolate (the chocolate ombre sponge... yum...)

outside the cafe in the bed, mix of snowdrops, hellebores and the little yellow flowers (think it said winter aconite but I could be wrong)

 I walked round the far side of the pond

 I noticed a large black bird flapping it's wings.


not sure, but I think it may be a cormorant.

couldn't really get a decent view from closer!

 another large mahonia

this goose was trying to get into the POW glasshouse...


luckily he was looking in the window not the door


I entered...

 this time, there was a water dragon on the rock  - I was glad I had taken my longest lens

 it was still hard to get a good pic though with all the leaves in the foreground





I walked round the side to the underpass

 and got him from the side

 I was rewarded through there too...

sitting on the edge of the water

 posing so nicely!

 as I peered under the tree they sometimes sit on, I noticed another one (I'd walked past it)


on a rock just a few feet away
it's one of the smaller ones

I swapped back and forwards between the two of them - got a bit carried away!


was also taking pics on my phone and uploading them to facebook at the same time!

larger one

 smaller one

 larger....

 smaller...

both of them in one

 then the larger one turned round

 and the little one jumped in the water

 had a little swim

 and climbed out

 I've never seen them both so close together before.

I couldn't stop taking photos

 but eventually dragged myself away

quick walk through the cool orchid room

 the smaller one had gone as I went back past

 but the first one was still up on his watery rock

 mass of tiny flowers by the exit

 could't see the name of this

 realised I hadn't been into the alpine house so cut back across...

grasses being buffeted in the wind

 veltheimia capensis

 scillia

 little narcissus

 iris

 still lots of snowdrops under the acer in the rock drive

 seedheads

 funghi

that's your lot today!  thanks for looking