This weekend I introduced my lovely family to the delights of @kewgardens. It was a perfectly, crisp Autumn day. We wrapped up warm and arrived at the gardens around 10.45am on Saturday morning. After deciding to take up the offer of one of Kew’s free hour long guided tours, we “ooooh-ed” and “aaaah-ed” our way around the gardens spending a good 4-5 hours exploring, taking photographs and trying to guess the names of various trees, plants and geese that we encountered on our merry way.

We visited The Temperate House, The Princess of Wales Conservatory, The Palm House, The Marianne North Gallery - which features a breathtaking array of Botanical art by my new heroine - Marianne North.

Painting 035, View of the Jesuit College of Caracas, Minas Geraes, Brazil, by Marianne North.

The Xstrata Treetop walkway had us feeling like kids, high up in the treetops, gazing down over Kew’s 300+ acres and spotting several David Nash sculptures spread throughout the grounds. We had lunch at The Orangery - a tasty selection of chicken soup, homemade bread and a delicious beef stew with dumplings and polenta, with fresh coffee, orange juice and a slice of carrot cake for my Nanny Nooch.

Photo: Wisteria Sinesis by John Grimshaw. Check out his blog here.

Even though most of the trees have now shed their leaves, there was still so much to see. It made us want to revisit the gardens in Spring, Summer, Autumn AND Winter. These seasonal transitions are truly splendid sights, the subtle changes in colour, texture and fragrance are a delight to all of the senses. I'm particularly excited about revisiting the little Loveseat hidden within the Wisteriasinensis  by The Secluded Garden and bringing a summer picnic here for Kew The Music 2013 (9th - 14th July 2013) listening to a little Blondie, Paul Weller or Jools Holland and also settling down with some popcorn whilst watching Kew The Movies!

Photography © Lucie Kerley