Winter visit to Wisley Pinetum

Oh dear, is this an age thing?  I found myself striking out for the least populated parts of the RHS Wisley gardens yesterday.  And I fell in love with the pinetum for the first time. Ever.

In a domestic setting – well, let’s be frank – a suburban garden, they scream 1970s.  But here in a mass planting of so many different trees it was magic.

Or maybe I was just missing my evergreens.

They were stunning and majestic and some, frankly, wacky.

The pinetum is located on the far western side of the gardens, and as an extra bonus, right beside the river.  So once you follow the paths all the way round, you can work your way back beside the river Wey.

There were also some borders nearby that were appropriately planted around the pines.

Heathers. In flower.  And suddenly I wasn’t in a blustery Surrey in February, I was in the deep forest in the Cevennes, or near St Pierre St Jean.

I loved it.

And it gave me a happy pause before I plunged back into the madly artificial rockeries and other strange parts of Wisley.