Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Visiting England: A Museum of Garden History

Now that I am home from London, everyone wants to know if I went to their favorite monument. They ask, "Did you visit Buckingham Palace/The Tower of London/Westminster Abbey?" Ummm...no. I might someday, but this trip was all about delight and I had to stay focused.

While I didn't have time to visit some of the classic British sights, I did make it to this gem, The Museum of Garden History. Housed in a 14th century deconsecrated church (St Mary-at-Lambeth) near the banks of the Thames, this Garden Museum is dedicated to both historical collections and the pursuit of gardening in modern times.

I loved wandering through their permanent collection of garden artifacts. A vintage glass cloche, a Sweet Pea seed counter (dispenser) from the 1900's and this miniature iron garden.

This display is about 2 x 3 feet and is protected in a glass box. I peered into this secret garden for quite a while and decided that my favorite part was the man pushing the vintage lawn roller (in the back right corner).

What do you like best?

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