Tulips at Hampton Court

The tulip festival at Hampton Court started officially yesterday so I went early this morning to see if they are all flowering. Many are not yet in full bloom but this garden was looking lovely. I will probably visit again in a week or so to see the blooms in the other areas. I’m not sure that as many areas have been planted as last year and there were far fewer tulips in pots…maybe they are still in greenhouses or elsewhere and will be put in position when blooming? There was a large area in the vegetable garden area planted with many different species…and the toilets there are now open again! They have been closed for three years..since COVID lockdown.

There are some tulips planted in ‘lead’ tanks…see extra..however when I went near and touched them I realised they are actually made of some sort of plastic ..very realistic .

Later I decided to tackle some gardening at home..moving all the empty pots and saucers from our patio to the path outside to give them a thorough clean. In the next week I aim to weed between the slabs and clean the patio with ‘blackspot’ as they are very grubby.

As I post this I’m watching the Grand National which has been delayed because of protesters getting onto the course. My parents were keen racegoers so we always watched the National and I remember taking part in many sweepstakes as well as betting on the race. But not for many years!