A Tour of RHS Garden Wisley

TravelDog goes on a tour around RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey just off the A3. This garden of the Royal Horticultural Society is famed for its collection of plants. We look at the new crocuses, have some pizza for lunch (food review), walk through the orchards, visit the new building with a horticulture library and feed the fish. You can also see some of TravelDog's (AKA artist Robert Dunt) paintings and drawings made at Wisley. We also check out the bee hives and apiary.

Wikipedia says: "Wisley is now a large and diverse garden covering 240 acres (971,000 m²). In addition to numerous formal and informal decorative gardens, several glasshouses and an extensive arboretum, it includes small scale "model gardens" which are intended to show visitors what they can achieve in their own gardens, and a trials field where new cultivars are assessed. The laboratory, for both scientific research and training, was originally opened in 1907, but proved inadequate. It was expanded and its exterior was rebuilt during World War I. It was designated a Grade II Listed building in 1985. Visitor numbers increased significantly from 5,250 in 1905, to 11,000 in 1908, 48,000 in the late 1920s, and 170,000 in 1957, and passed 400,000 in 1978, 500,000 in 1985, and 600,000 in 1987.

In April 2005, Alan Titchmarsh cut the turf to mark the start of construction of the Bicentenary Glasshouse. This major new feature covers three quarters of an acre (3,000 m²) and overlooks a new lake built at the same time. It is divided into three main planting zones representing desert, tropical and temperate climates. It was budgeted at £7.7 million and opened on 26 June 2007. A £20 million Welcome Building including a larger restaurant, cafe and visitor facilities was opened by Alan Titchmarsh on 10 June 2019.

Features -

Pink rhododendron at RHS Wisley, 2013
Wisley has a large number of features, including the following:[13]

Glasshouse with desert, tropical and temperate climates, and with special topical displays
Clore Learning Centre
Alpine houses
Laboratory
Library[14]
Plant information centre
Trials field (where plants are submitted for trial, allowing some to be awarded the prestigious Award of Garden Merit)
Fruit field, featuring large numbers of apples, pears and other fruit grown in various forms.
Rock garden[15] and alpine meadow on a sloping site
Wild garden
Walled garden
Canal with water lilies in season
Battleston Hill, which includes many rhododendrons and azaleas
Rose borders and mixed borders
Jubilee arboretum
Pinetum
National heather collection
Visitor facilities include cafés and restaurant, car parks, plant centre, etc.