Kew - a late visit

 Late only due to a  local Fun Run taking place meaning the gardens didn't open till 11.  Was very odd not leaving home till the time I'd be thinking about an early coffee break some visits... and mixing with a long queue to get in!  These will be the way of it in a couple of weeks anyway when the members special opening finishes for another year.

however, as a bonus as I took my normal opening photo at the Palm House, the clouds parted and the sky was blue

I decided to go into the glasshouses first this time before they got too busy

a couple of the pelican flowers still on show in the waterlily house

Princess of Wales conservatory next

the latest titan arum is growing apace

these orchids look like they're cuddling up!  

bed outside the POW - dahlia

sun through the canna lilies

alpine house.  for some reason these on the camera came out really dark

but the ones I did on the phone were ok

rock garden

blogger is swapping orders again,  too tired to re-do them....

squashes and pumpkin check....

my favourite dahlia (I found a tub of raspberry ripple ice cream this week, it's not like the old Wall's block you used to get, but was a nice memory-trip!!

salvia border - just a couple this week

some late-flowering clematis in the veg beds 

evolution garden... couldn't see what this is, but striking (tall, covered in these  ?flowers...)

a true sign of autumn.   one or two were developing their skeleton-like look.

whilst some of the echinacea (in the background here) are fading, still loads of colour from tehe rudbeckia

and the asters - which were smothered in bees

I did have trouble getting the bees in focus though, they were FAST today

lots of different species too 

then back round to the pond 

must look to see what tree this is next week

I checked out the queue for refreshments at the cafe back at the main gate but it was quite long, and more importantly all the outside tables were full

so I kept on walking towards the temperate house 

and found a fresh crop of mushrooms under the tree by the "please be seated" installation (which was also full so I couldn't have mu usual sit down there

amazing ferns 

there were masses of blooms on the angel's trumpet  - both this salmony pink one and the paler yellowy one

i found some more funghi inside again 

signs of autumn coming to the leaves on the trees outside 

and hiding under some shrubs, a mass of decaying funghi - must have missed them in their prime!

the sun was quite bright now and I regretted not having my sunglasses (forecast hadn't suggested I would need them!)

then it was time to walk round the lake

stopping part way for a sit on a bench and a packet of crisps (well, mini cheddars to be exact, my favourite red leicester flavour)

decided I didn't want to climb the steps for the treetop walkway today (again)  

I went back into the Temperate house and walked through the half I hadn't done earlier (entered half way along before)

then walked along the edge of some beds back towards the Palm House

hypericum.   love these 

and I always forget the name of this tree, but the smell is kind or citrussy.

beautiful

walking through the rose garden,  loads of blooms still 

then into the Palm House

love the white middles (and on the reverse too) of this hibiscus

quote hard to tell which is the metal support and which the trunk of the banana...

the one with the wire round is the support

looks like it could do with a bit of a scrub tome

plenty of bananas though

then the new rose beds between the end of the Palm House and the Waterlily house

they're more sheltered so the bushes still have lots and lots of flowers

these, a variety called Dame Judi Dench, where beautiful, but sadly very little scent

(phone)

then the Broad Walk 

I can't resit them!

kneeling on the path, shooting up into them, 

 they look like trees

at the end of the Broad Walk, before going home, I stopped for a refreshment break.

no coffee or cake today, 

but

vanilla and clotted cream...

delicious.

then it was time for home - walking across Kew Bridge, to the train,  a fast walk as I was in danger of missing one

lots of football supporters around (the local team Brentford, play in a new stadium just behind Kew Bridge station)

luckily, as I crossed the station the train was a couple of minutes late and when it came was packed with fans exiting for the game (they lost sadly)  

Thanks for looking - next week it's an 8am start again, make the most of it before we revert to the normal 10am for the rest of the year.