2020-05-01_Lonely_Planet_Traveller

©FINCH

PUBLISHING,

WORDS

©NATASHA

GOODFELLOW,

ILLUSTRATION

©CLOVER

ROBIN

London in bloom

NEW GUIDE

CHISWICKHOUSE

PlannedbythethirdEarl

of Burlington(1694–

1753),thegardensof

ChiswickHousefollow

boththeItalianateand

EnglishLandscapestyles.

TheConservatoryhouses

a finecamelliacollection,

notablytheexceptionally

rare ‘Middlemist Red’.

FULHAMPALACE

Theformersummerhome

of thebishopsof London

is thecity’ssecond-oldest

botanicgarden.The

palacewallsaredraped

withwisteria,while

beyonda littlered-brick

Tudorgatewayliesa

prettywalledgarden,

recently restored.

KENSINGTON

GARDENS

Withinthese 270 acres,

you’llfindperennialsand

floweringshrubsalong

theFlowerWalk,dashes

of colourin theSunken

Garden,andArabella

Lennox-Boyd’slandscape

aroundtheSerpentine

Sackler Gallery.

COLUMBIAROAD

FLOWERMARKET

EverySunday,crowds

cometo browsea vivid

arrayof flowersand

othergardenessentials,

to thesoundof plenty

of Cockneybarrow-boy

banter.Comewhenit

opensat 8amformore

room,or nearer3pmfor

closing-time bargains.

KEWGARDENS

Builtupsince1759,the

RoyalBotanicGardens

at Kewnowcountsas

themostcomprehensive

botanicalcollectionon

Earth.Highlightsinclude

orchiddisplays,spring

carpetsof bluebellsand

a botanical art gallery.

It’sthoughttherearesomeeightmilliontreesin London,makingit perhapstheworld’sgreenestmajorcity.

Butothercolourswillincreasinglybeaddedto nature’spaletteas springunfolds,andthere’sa newmap

to followits progress.A LondonFloral(£8.50;finchpublishing.co.uk)includestextdescriptionsof morethan

80 parks, gardens and other flower-powered spots. Find our own west-to-east selection of five right here.