Discover more in London
From thriving wetlands to sprawling estates, intimate spaces and modernist masterpieces, London has it all, if you know where to look.
The Ornamental Vegetable Garden at Osterley reaches its peak during late summer after a year of careful care by the garden and volunteer team. It’s made up of four beds, one which is dedicated to traditional planting, one which is made up as a pumpkin patch and the last two of which are for a creative mix of brassicas, dahlias, antirrhinums, zinnias and amaranths, interspersed with vibrant kale. There’s a late summer perennial border against the western wall too featuring salvias, penstemons, crocosmia, gladiolus and kniphofias creating a colourful riot of colour.
Colourful sunflowers in a sunny colour palette of yellows and oranges light up flowerbeds, with dahlias adding a decorative splash of rainbow colour too. Over in the Kitchen Garden tomatoes, courgettes and peppers are ready to harvest, with pumpkins and gourds growing larger day by day. Produce harvested from the garden is used in the Orangery Cafè and donated to Richmond Foodbank.
It's that time of year when leaves float softly off the trees and mornings have a misty haze. Gardens and parks across London are filled with a wash of warm autumn colours, with vibrant pumpkins, soft golden leaves, deep purple kale and shiny apples lighting up the beds and borders.
As the days become colder, the Kitchen Garden is busy with produce harvested by our volunteers. Vegetables are used in the Orangery Café, sent to local foodbanks and available by suggested donation in the produce cart outside the shop (subject to availability). Vibrant dahlias, calendula and sunflowers accent the borders during early to mid autumn, with a rainbow of colour.
As autumn arrives so does the opportunity to see swathes of colour around the estate at Osterley Park and House. From the Shagbark Hickory showing glorious golds and rich reds, to the bright orange and yellows of pumpkins and gourds from the Ornamental Vegetable Garden.
See the lime tree lined avenues burst into fiery shades bathed in beautiful autumn light and hear birds bustling around among burnished tones of copper.
As the cooler months take hold in Rainham Hall's community garden, this three acre spaces starts to shift towards harvest. The orchard will be in full fruit with cherries, damsons, mulberries and apples. Whilst on the ground vegetable beds contain chard, pumpkins, leeks and onions.
Dig out your wellies and head on a walk through the meadows at Runnymede, spotting colourful fungi and crunching through golden leaves.
A small 300 year old orchard of 28 apple trees comes into its own during autumn, with a harvest of shiny bright apples and heritage pears adorning the trees. Pumpkins and sweetcorn add colour to the Kitchen Garden and late flowering blooms stud the gardens with spiky seed heads, like mini sculptures.
From thriving wetlands to sprawling estates, intimate spaces and modernist masterpieces, London has it all, if you know where to look.