Our trip to Cheshire started early. I had to be at Tothill Street at 7.30am so I left Lou's at 6.00am and caught the tube to St James Square where the bus was parked. There were only five of us to start the trip but we gathered up people along the way to Cheshire.
It was a long bus trip up through the Midlands via Birmingham to Crewe where the last group joined us. Not far from Manchester and Kristen's old territory.
We had a lunch break in one of those drive in stations before heading to the Wirrel Peninsula and the Ness Botanic Gardens for our afternoon tour.
It was a lovely drive down the Peninsula through little old villages of Burton and Ness. Picture perfect but no time for stops!!!!
We arrived with time for a cuppa before the tour started.
This is a significant Botanic garden in temperate climes so it features plants from all over the world. Indeed it's founder Mr Bullet introduced rhododendrons and camellias and many other plants to Britain because he sponsored plant hunters in the 19th Century to explore foreign policy, aces and bring back botany specimens for research and propagation.
He left the huge property to his daughter on his death who then gifted it to Liverpool University who manages it today with much reduced staffing.
Our walk took us through stone gardens,Meadows, herbaceous borders,vegetable gardens using permaculture methods water gardens and through the more intimate landscapes where weddings took place.
The range of specimens is huge. We passed redwood trees, a huge monkey puzzle tree and a new strain of later flowering azaleas bred by a Liverpool plants man.
It was an amazing garden and much more to see at different times of the year.
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