Before and after

A very long time ago,

probably 40 years ago, I received a plant from my friend.

We called it Waxplant – Hoya

Since then it has grown very slowly but steady.

Every year it blooms.

For the first time I actually saw how the buds open.

Fascinating the way they open up.

This time I captured it on camera.

Before :

After:

The flowers are highly scented specially in the evening.

 

Kew Gardens 5th Smile – Temperate House

A cold day in Kew Gardens and so many things to see:

The Temperate house is home to an internationally important collection of temperate zone plants, including some of the rarest and most threatened.

It is the largest Victorian glasshouse in the world.

As a Listed Grade 1 building, it has been restored to its new glory and re opened in May 2018.

 

Walk with me and enjoy the rare and beautiful plants.

Nepal Yam

Giant citrus fruit

Australian plant

Click on the individual picture to enlarge.

Each plant showing off its beauty in different ways.

There is a spiral staircase to walk up along the Gallery.

The view is fantastic, and the sun was shining.

On my way out I passed the gift shop and found some lovely Bamboo socks.

I couldn’t resist.

 

I’ll be back at Kew very soon!

all pictures taken by me at Kew Garden

Today’s Inspiration – Blaise Pascal

Kind words do not cost much.

Yet they accomplish much.

 

Blaise Pascal

 

 

Picture taken by me – Kew Gardens

Kew Gardens 3rd Smile

Another visit to my favourite garden.

Every time I explore different areas.

As it is so big, I never run out of finding beauties of nature.

This time I found

the making of a pinecone

 

A really funny shaped very small bloom:

(I don’t know all the botanical names, as my eyes are bigger than my memory)

 

One of my favourite grasses

 

Another pretty little thing – a hanging flower

One of Kew’s famous lizards

a tall proud multi coloured beauty

and another hanging blue miracle

 

‘Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. ¹² The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. ‘ Genesis 1,11

 

All pictures taken at Kew Gardens by me.

Kew Gardens 2nd Smile – The weekend starts

Another wonderful day in Kew Gardens.

Please walk with me through the

Prince of Wales Conservatory

There are Orchids

 

There are meat eating plants

 

Beautiful Cacti

 

 

 

There are waterfalls

 

 

Floating Baking trays….

 

 

 

Amazing plants and colours

 

I can’t get enough of the natures variety and beautiful displays.

 

Hope you enjoy the small tour. Soak it up and relax!

Wishing all a relaxing weekend!

 

All pictures taken by me at Kew Gardens.

Please let me know if the pictures display correctly. Thanks

Wisteria and other beauties along the road

It is colourful flower time

the Earth is laughing!

Beautiful Wisteria hanging out of a garden

Tiny flowers along the shopping mall

Even tinier flower, shot with a Macro lens on my phone.

Petunias in a flower basket

Little flowers , again captured with a Macro lens.

 

and all together

 

Strawberry Galore

My strawberries this year grew absolutely beautiful.

They bloomed a lot:

 

We seem to have had enough rain

and then the sun came.

I had more strawberries than ever.

Just look

 

A collage out of my many harvests.

 

and then came out the

Strawberry bowl to eat them out of.

 

 

Oh how yummy they were.

There are still now some late comers, I eat straight of the plant.

What a joy, what great gift!

More gardens in London

I discovered another lovely green space in London.

A little oasis right in the middle

of the concrete jungle of the Barbican.

There is the second biggest conservatory in London

which is like a mini Kew Gardens with exotic plants,

like cacti, orchids, bamboo etc.

It is home to exotic fish and over 2,000 species of tropical plants.

It is open on Sundays to the public for free.

See for yourself what we found there:

 

 

 

 

 

A perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon in London.

 

 

 

 

 

Still smiling?

Good Morning my friends.

It has been a while

since I had enough time to sit and compose something

and visit all your blogs regularly.

Even though holidays I have been away and had visitors,

which I thoroughly enjoyed.

 

Finding new places in London to show my visitors I stumbled on some

yet fairly unknown places.

One of them is Crossrail place.

This is a new development, not even finished,

but the beautiful roof garden is finished.

It looks rather futuristic.

 

It features plants from East and West, meeting in the middle. A calm garden on top of a new railway station which is being build in Canary Wharf. It was calm and quiet in the middle of a concrete world. We had a lovely walk and enjoyed the amazing plants and trees there. Have a look for yourself!

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There was a piano in the middle of the building so I couldn’t resist to do a fun bit on it which my aunt taught me.

 

It was great fun and a great place to visit!

More discoveries in the next post!

Keep smiling and enjoy the warmer weather!

A walk in Cambridge

We took a trip to Cambridge the University town for a day!

This one is the famous Kings College.

 

We went to the Botanical Garden, enjoy the walk with me!

I left the pictures in the original size as I love how they came out, very focused

– done with my phone!

 

Super flowers, amazing plants- nature all around the world.

… and a relaxing palm tree for me!