Kew Gardens on a sunny day in Spring

With Spring settled in and the promise of a bright morning it was obvious that I should pay Kew Gardens another visit. So I did.

Broadly speaking, the southern end of Kew Garden has trees and the northern end has flowers so I decided to enter the gardens at Victoria Gate in the middle. From there I walked west towards the river with the plan of then walking vaguely north following the river. I would make the rest of the plan up as I went along letting Kew Gardens guide me.

I soon came to the lake and as it was going the same way that I was I followed it. This is the view I had of it as I approached it with the subtle Sackler Crossing in the middle. It is only the person in  white on the bridge that reveals its position.

The view from the bridge is always worth seeing so I walked on the north side of the lake then used the bridge to cross to the south side. Being Spring the birds were busy, far to busy to pay attention to people walking on the bridge above them.

As always, the view from the far end of the lake was spectacular and it forced me to stop for a few moments to take it all in. The Sackler Crossing is in the picture again but it is harder to see this time.

From the lake I headed to Rhododendron Dell. This little stretch of sunken garden is slightly sheltered and that is enough for blooms to thrive there.

Having emerged from the Dell all the paths seemed to lead towards the Orangery and it seemed sensible to allow them to take me there for the obligatory coffee and cake. While resting there I made my plan for the rest of my visit and chose to follow the outer path clockwise back to the Victoria Gate.

The first place that the path took me was the Duke's Garden where this large Magnolia stole the show.  Everybody passing through paused to look at it and it featured in many photographs, including this one.

Next stop was the semi-walled garden that housed the Plant Family Beds. The familiar beds were there but they had been joined by a few new statues, including this smarty dressed but not very effective scarecrow.

The next surprise was the Waterlily House. This had been closed for a while and had only recently reopened when I paid it this visit. The basics of the building were the same but the inside was completely different.

The plants around the edge had been replaced and the new arrivals were a lot smaller than those the were there before, though I dare say that they will grow in time. Before that happens the Waterlily House will continue to look bright and fresh.

Leaving by Victoria Gate meant walking past the Palm House Parterre, and that is always a good thing to do.

Kew Gardens is a wonderful place to visit at any time of the year but a sunny day in Spring is obviously a wonderful time to go.